Guys: I leave today on vacay to a cruise. In the Bahamas. With Jeff. and his family. I am so excited. I am excited to have a vacation that is a real vacation: not being home (although I love being home), not visiting people who I miss (and miss me too), not driving, not in charge. I cannot remember the last time I went on vacation to somewhere that wasn’t to visit someone. I think it might have been when I was in high school and my family and I went to San Francisco.

We went to the Galapagos, too, but that was with my dad’s work. Going to San Francisco was the last time that my vacation was about seeing something new, being with people you love, and not, you know, cleaning up the kitchen when we were done.

In college, every break was to home, to Jeff, to babysit. The past two years, I’ve been on a cross-country road trip, I’ve been to Michigan countless times, Chicago, New York, Washington state, China, San Francisco. Every vacation I take is amazing: but all tiring. All work. This one, this is about relaxation. This is about having a good time. This is about the sun, the sky, the water, rest. I will sleep. I will read. I will listen to Obama. I will love Jeff. I will shop, I will visit new countries. I will enjoy Jeff’s family. I will come back tired. I will be rejuvenated. I will be ready for: Pittsburgh, Connecticut, and Chicago. I will be ready for weddings, for red eyes, for family, for babies and for loving.

What are all of you doing for vacations this year? Are you going abroad? Staying home? Visiting friends? Perhaps, visiting me? Picking strawberries on a remote farm in Vermont? Do tell!