Weekend Update

Imagine my confusion this morning when I was reading Salon and The Daily Beast, both which had articles about BBQ's, beaches, sunshine and things that sounded like summer. Hmmm, I'm wondering. Who wants to read about summer when it's still November? Barely 50 degrees, raining every week, and almost every day since February, the skies a funeral grey; it feels like winter in Portland and not Memorial Day Weekend. We've lived here for 18 years and each year the winters last longer. Or maybe it's just us getting old.

Lucky Dylan left this morning to go to Washington DC with her 8th grade class. This is her second trip without us, and first time without any family along. She joins 37 of her classmates while they take in Washington DC in a whirlwind of activity, starting at 7:30 each morning and ending at 9:00 each night. And she gets to do it in shorts; it's supposed to be in the 90's in DC!

As you know, Dylan's an old pro at flying and traveling. She was two months old when she took her first flight and we really couldn't count how many she's taken since that one. But she has at least one classmate--maybe more--for whom this is their first airplane flight. Imagine the excitement and thrill this trip will be for the kids who've never been on a plane, never been to the East Coast, never seen a building older than 100 years, or ridden a subway! Moments like these made me the traveler I am today. Maybe a few of these kids will come back wanting more--a lot more!

Andy and I celebrate a weekend sans kids (pup is going to have a daycare sleepover) while we revel in doing the really exciting things that we did before having a family. Napping, going to two or three movies in a row and eating out at ridiculously expensive restaurants. We have an excuse, it's our 18th wedding anniversary this weekend.

From the Department of Shameless Self Promotion

Hot off the press!

My essay A Bold Yellow In A Sky of Blue has been published in the the nonfiction collection More Voices: A Collection of Works from Asian Adoptees. The anthology was put out by HoltChildren's Services, the adoption agency that was created by Harry and Bertha Holt shortly after the Korean War, and through which I was brought to my family. Holt has probably placed more children in international adoptions than any other agency. Twelve years ago Holt published their first anthology, Voices From Another Place, which included another essay I wrote.

The books are available on Amazon. While I encourage anyone interested in the stories to buy one or both, I receive no money from the sale of the book.