Took a big stretch of time off from writing on the site. I wanted to contemplate a couple losses, namely Loren, and I had been on a winning streak with other things. Balance, life often needs it. Then you an handle the difficult stuff better. Somewhat like the younger characters on Schitt’$ Creek; they’ve had an incredibly cozy lifestyle thanks to their parents being in the one percenter crowd and some of the comedy comes from them having no clue on how to do things for themselves. I’m not quite as helpless because I’m grateful for the life skills my parents gave me: doing my own laundry, paying bills, balancing my checkbook (pre-software days), filling out my own taxes (1040EZ!) and access to a typewriter to keep up that skill I gained as a high school freshman.
This month’s header is dedicated to what happens for a fortunate few college students…Spring Break in a warmer, primarily beach-based climate. Personally, I never knew anyone who did the whole Florida thing. I’ll ask Helen if she did. I know she went to Austin well before the city was overwhelmed by SXSW. Others went home. Since Puerto Rico was home for José and Nelson, that doesn’t count! Trust me, parents are very skilled at ruining paradise, something I learned with my first and only Summer back from university. They made Milwaukee more fun than Philadelphia or San Diego.
Back to the header. As I said, it’s dedicated to the myth of what Spring Break is like and what should happen. Maybe I should use Photoshop to convert the sand into snow. Then it can be really dedicated to the two breaks I had in Winnipeg! Rather counter intuitive, going farther North and not to ski. The second time gave me a greater appreciation of a major Canadian band who had only one hit in America, the Payola$ (“Eyes of a Stranger” on the Valley Girl soundtrack). In the Great White North, they were obviously bigger and I caught a retrospective via my walkman’s FM radio. I only remember the English stuff they played after the Payola$. Would I ever live in Winnipeg? Too cold and I have the feeling they’re isolated from mainstream Canadian culture, like America’s Milwaukee or Phoenix.
Enjoy the rest of your week. We have to set our clocks forward during the upcoming weekend. At least the kids in school get time to adjust while we working stiffs feel funky for a month.