For the past few years, it seems like that when the holidays roll around, I’ve been up to my eyeballs in either life or book, and haven’t had an actual VACATION. I used to spend the Christmas break reading. I’d pick a long, meaty book that I would never be able to finish during the year, and that would be my present to myself. For the past few years, I haven’t been able to read much at all. But this year….
ahhhh…..
Yes, that joyous scream you heard on Wednesday was the sound of Kathleen sending in a book. There is no moment on the planet that is as sigh-inducing as knowing for another few days at least you are FREE. Well, actually, there are a few moments that are as sigh-inducing as that, (I do write for Blaze after all (K) ) but seriously, it’s pretty awesome.
So, today, I went out shopping. There was no watch-watching because I had no place to be and no guilt about taking time out to be among the huddled masses (it was nine degrees this AM; the masses were def huddled). I scoured for various holiday bows, but the shelves were pretty much empty. Rite-Aid had their Valentine’s Day candy on display. (VD-CREEP). At the craft store, the shelves that held the little decorative sprigs looked like an antelope carcass on the savannah, cleaned to the BONE. I did score a food processor at Macy’s, and some awesome cheese (not at Macy’s, in case you were confused). But in the end, I came home with bags of bows and Drunken Goat (it’s a cheese, not an actual intoxicated animal), and a high-powered chopper that makes the Bass-O-Matic looked like chopper liver.
So, we’re off to a party tonight, and I have a few books lined up for the holiday reading fest, but all in all, it’s good to be a very restive, relaxing, holiday. AT LAST.
So, here’s the question, if you could design your favorite holiday break, what would you do? Shop, read, spa, TV, movies? Let me know, and I’ll have some hot chocolate, mug, and books to one lucky commenter.
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Hey Kathleen, I am glad you have the chance to relax and chill now. Those Ah moments are definitely very precious. Like you, I use my vacation to relax and catch up on reading. It is definitely a time to diminish my TBR pile. If I could design my favorite Holiday Break, which is summer, I would travel to Europe and explore the castles and stay in bed and breakfast. I just want to visit some of the sites I discovered in the books I read. I would also make sure that I spent time reading. I can’t go anywhere without books, so that is a must. If I could fit the spa in there I would too, since I have never gone to one. It is defo on my TE (To Experience) list though. I won’t have to worry about life’s stressors (sp?) and just allow myself to be. I hope that you have a wonderful and restive holiday. Merry Christmas!!! (Just in case I don’t “see” you before then.)
OH, I just ordered “Shaken and Stirred” from thriftbooks.com. It was the only one I was missing. I can’t wait to get it so that I can experience the O’Sullivans again.
Peace and love,
Paula R.
Paula the castles and spa in Europe sounds awesome. I hope you have happy holidays as well. Thank you for getting S&S. It warms my heart as well as cocoa. (L)
Living with 4 children ages 6 to 18…my perfect Holiday break would entail peace and quiet so that I could read to my heart’s content. No interruptions…no having to deal with emergencies, breaking up arguments, cleaning up spills, picking up toys, cooking meals. Just pure blessed peace and quiet. I would spend one day sifting through my TBR mountain picking just the right books to read, getting my chair all ready with my favorite blanket and side table cleaned off to hold my hot chocolate and books. I would also keep my laptop close so that I could blog about the books I’ve read and maybe catch-up my Google Reader…but must of the time would be spent reading books!!
Ahhhhh…maybe one of these days.
Ah, Kara…. I feel your pain. And some day, the kids will stop making messes in your house, and there will be no arguments, and there are no more toys, and if you want ice cream for supper at 2am, you can do it.
Finally! An easy question to answer!
My favorite holiday break would be visiting my sister and her family 2000+ miles away, like our family used to do when our kids were barely into school and all the way through their school years. Now my kids are in their early twenties and can’t get time off work at Christmastime. I just know that if we all flew there to visit, we would toboggan, skate, go to the gym and walk daily, swim at an indoor wave pool, geocache if the weather permitted, play board/card games in the evenings, and read library books till bedtime. We grocery shop often so we can make special meals amongst the bunch of us. Depending on availability, we’d throw in some museums, possibly an IMAX theatre, some live theatre productions, and probably lunch and/or supper out once or twice. Ahhhhh! Now THAT’s the life. No telephone for us. No customers interrupting wanting “rush jobs” done. No “babysitting” my MIL with Alzheimer’s (but would gladly provide respite care again upon our return from this dream vacation). Yes. This would be a lovely break until “real life” intrudes again!
BTW, I think I heard a joyous scream on Wednesday night — or maybe that was me when I finished “working” for (hopefully) the year. I get confused easily…. Either way, heartfelt congrats on reaching this milestone before Christmas, and here’s hoping you indeed have a super-relaxing “holiday break” yourself!
LOL, Laney, glad I could sling an easy one. I hope your sis appreciates you and what a great sister you are.
My favorite holiday break involves :
1) an exotic setting (and I mean it in the true sense of the word, that is anywhere but home, if possible some place VERY MUCH different from home)
2) good food
3) a few good romances
4) a pool (where I can dip once in a while with a long chair so I can READ).
I’ve managed to get a few ideal breaks in my life but not nearly enough !
Hello, Emmanuelle, I think that sounds like a lot of fun. Love exotic places, good food, and good romances, but me and the sun are not friends. End up with French-Fried-Kathleen. I do sunscreen, but it never fails that there is the quarter size spot on my shoulder or the back of the knee or the top of my foot that I missed. Obviously you are better at sunscreen than moi.
Oh sure… I guess I forgot to mention the useful tree I usually rest under. No sun for me either. I’m not a readhead but I do have the read head skin, bummer !!
a-HA! I knew there was a catch. With a tree, I”m fine as well, although there’s that five-second walk from hotel to beach that usually fries my skin.
Hi Kathleen,
Congratulations on your book! Woohoo! I would say that is a big sigh-worthy moment!
My perfect holiday break is to have a whole week with no responsibilities whatsoever and no places to go to. Just to spend each day as I want, get up when I want, and basically not have a care in the world. I have so many responsibilities its not funny! To just sit back and relax and read a book is pure bliss to me!
Although, the most perfect place I would love to travel to would be Aruba or any tropical island. Love the sun, ocean, sand, and the warm weather. Would love to have my own plane to fly wherever I want to go to in the world. Sure beats going through those awful airport lines.
Have a very blessed holiday and Happy New Year! (G)
Thank you Michele, I hear that getting away from the responsibilities bit. The idea of not HAVING to do anything would be blissful
I’ve heard Aruba is lovely, and thanks for the nice holiday wishes. Happy Holidays to you, too!
Merry, merry Kathleen.
Perfect holiday?
One word: Beach.
Sam, Beach? Beach? I don’t get this. I have seen you. You should burn as much as moi at the beach!! How do you do this? What is your magic formula to escape? Sigh. I think I am cursed.
But UVF miseries aside, Merry, merry to you, too! May 2010 be full of great dreams and adventures.
I have two perfect holiday ideas.
1. Would be a holiday spent with my Mom, Grandma, Uncles family and my four siblings and their families. Lots of food, lots of noise and lots of love.
2. Would be spent sitting in front of the fire place with a cup of hot chocolate while it snows outside and a stack of great romances to read.
But since Im 2000 miles from my family and I have three kids ages 9, 5 and 3 I cant really have any of those, lol. So I settle for cuddling on the couch with the kids while it snows outside and they watch kids movies and I try to read my books, but I seem to get sucked into the movies, I love Disney movies, lol!
Have a wonderful Christmas and a Very Happy New Year!! (*)
Ahhhh…. Alina, that’s so sweet…. It’s snowing here as well. Just now getting going…. You have a very merry Christmas and a great New Year.
Hi Kathleen,
Congratulations on finishing your book. I enjoy the time after Christmas because that is a great time to read. I also enjoy shopping and especially the type of shopping you were talking about where I can spend a few hours shopping and know that there is nothing else I’m supposed to be doing. Have a Merry Christmas!
Hello, Maureen. Thank you for the good words. If I might offer a suggestion, order everything online and then hide out, and then when you need a break, and people ask where you’re going, smile mysteriously and say, “Christmas shopping.”
We have a winner! Maureen, today you’re lucky number 8! I’ll be in touch to get the prize to you.
I love reading the new books I got for Christmas
But if I could wave a magic wand and have all the Christmas decorations packed up and put away, that would be good, too!
LOL, Heather. That’s what children are for
Right now I’m in the midst of making Christmas gifts (ornaments and things like that), and praying I get them done in time, so I’m definitely looking forward to breathing. My perfect holiday break sounds very much like most everyone here, someplace exquisitely warm and quiet, with an endless stack of books to devour. Congratulations on completing your latest book and have a Merry Christmas!
Summer! What a great name. I’m with you. A fireplace, cushy slippers, a blanket, hot cocoa and books! Thanks for the congrats.
I’d spent Christmas with my family in a tropical location!
Sounds like a great plan, Chey!
Reading a good book on a beach on a tropical island with a pina colada to refresh me!
I think we’re saying a lot of tropical holiday ideas, here… (D)
Nothing is better than curling up with a great read… some hot chocolate sounds nice!
Happy Holidays! Enjoy!
Thank you, Colleen! Right back at you!
Congrats on finishing your book. I would love to be on a beach sipping margaritas and relaxing with a book and a massage.
I think a nice massage, a hot drink and a hot Blaze book. That would be perfect.
Hey Linda! That would be TOTALLY hot, LOL! I’m warmed up just thinking about all those “ingredients”! Great idea!
Oh, Kathleen! How lovely it would be to have several unscheduled break days! A few of the meatier books from my TBR (the ones I’ve been saving for some uninterrupted reading time!) and some warm drinks and snacks, and I’m good to go! Phone off, computer off (at least while I read!) and game on!
Hope you’re having a lovely week!
(Y) (W) (W) congrats on teh books and great reveiws and RT nom whoooo
hot hot hot
yes a great vacartion with the family would bei dea rite now
sipping marigtia whoo
Thank you for the congrats, KH!! Happy Holidays to you!
I have no children and the family I have live several hundred miles away in opposite directions so if I could have any kind of Christmas I wanted it would be to go to a quiet mountain lodge for several days and be treated like an honored guest. There would be snow on the ground but not a whole bunch and I could stroll along and enjoy the sights and sounds of Christmas without have to worry about anything. And incidentally it doesn’t snow where I live. So maybe I sound a little strange. :-O
We always do a ton of family stuff, and as much as I love my family, I’d love a quiet holiday. No phone, just reading in front of my fireplace, drinking cocoa, wrapped in a comfy blanket.
Happy Holidays everybody!!! (G)
And the winner is….. (drumroll!!!) Maureen! You all have been tons of fun, and I hope everybody gets to touch a little bit of the holiday dreams you all have created. Happy Holidays and Happy Reading!
Congrats Maureen! (*)
Being a homebody, I definitely like to relax and lounge during my holiday break. I enjoy reading, watching TV and movies, eating yummy food, and hanging out with friends. Oh, also sleep. I love to sleep–when it’s a holiday or non-holiday.