Vacation reset

Only 8 more days until our annual trip to Southern Shores NC, where various households experience the harmony and discord that marks family vacations.  These yearly cycles provide satisfying memories as well as jarring moments of reality, where emotions sometimes boil over due to an seemingly off-hand remark that is never received in the manner that it is intended.  No fault in the disher or dishee, we just all have our ways of interpreting situations.

At around Day 6 last year, as one of my brothers in law and I were chest bumping and dodging flecks of spittle in an escalating screaming match last summer, my son fretted and wondered why we were "speaking" to each other in such an unkind manner.  K says to him:  "Don't worry, everyone yells at Dad at work, too".  Damned with faint praise yet again.

But she is right, as today was one of those days where everyone is a critic and everything we do is fraught with failure, or at least it seems that way.  Some days are better than others, and that's why we look forward to vacations, where we can lose ourselves in activities that include protecting as much sand from the sun as possible by using the body as a sacrificial shield; creating the ultimate chaise lounge in the damp sand just beyond the reach of the ebbing waves; seeing just how many times nephews and nieces can bury uncles in deep sandy pits; getting tossed in the breaking crests; reading A book (inside joke, as all I read at home is monthly cycling rags); going to Captain Frank's for a FootLong (with chili, onions, mustard, the works); and riding a rental roadie with the Kitty Hawk Cycle Company crew.   This way I get to check out a different ride and not hassle over bringing down mine among the flotsam and jetsam that fills up the van.

These are just a few of the many nothings I'm planning to partake in, in addition to enjoying time with the fam.  After our fight last year, my bro in law and I had an excellent rest of the vacation, as sometimes a reset is necessary.  Vacation reset is right around the corner!!!