Vacation

I just returned from a much needed mini-vacation upstate with my folks. We take a yearly sojourn to the Catskills where we stay at a resort-esque German place complete with homemade Appalachian style housing and German food near the town of Phoenicia. It is a true getaway as there is no cell phone service and no email. Mostly I sat on the terrace and read, and napped for what seemed to be most of each day. I had no idea how tired and stressed out I was until I was forced to do nothing for three and a half days. It was also cool enough to do a few quick runs (I despise running in heat and running on treadmills which effectively makes me exercise-less in summer months). I was surprised to find that my DCM-acquired pack-a-day cigarette habit didn't adversely affect my running abilities.

This area we stay in caters to the summer season tourists, so has its fair share of nice restaurants (we ate well,) curio and tshirt shops (not sold to us), and it was hot enough on one day to use the pool, which is unusual since it's usually significantly cooler in the mountains. I love the paradox of small upstate towns: you can eat a five star meal at a restaurant, but the next table will probably be filled with bikers wearing leather, and your waitress will probably be a 15 year old freshman from the local high school. Also, if Phoenicia is anything to go by, the dying art of airbrushing vans and trucks is indeed alive and well.