Mmm, daydreamy goodness: Tastes great, less filling!

About growing taller? You never know. I grew an inch and a half between my 21st and 30th birthdays!
I have a regular series of daydreams which I use to entertain myself when I'm on the treadmill. I'm just a Daydream Believer. :)

My daydreams are similar, new body and all. I'm also usually accompanied on these trips by Daniel Craig. Hooray :)

My dream vacation would be a month in Iceland in the winter! I have an aversion to sunlight (because I am a Ginger, according to my daughter) and would love to snuggle and knit basking in the cold weather and almost complete darkness. Sigh.

I was driving on the highway this week when I came upon a pickup truck with the cab door down hauling a full size chest freezer held in by one measley bungee cord. Risking a speeding ticket, I floored it and got around that guy ASAP! The ticket would have been WAAAAY cheaper than the damage to my minivan, whose official name is The Party Bus.

I'm going to go and daydream while I sort 10 loads of laundry. See you in Iceland!! ;o)

Random comment: apparently Kafka also invented the hard hat. So if you do turn into a roach wear one so you can protect yourself from being squashed.

geez, in that traffic you'd have to daydream just to cope.

i love your mitty/kafka references.

almost friday!

I always wonder about the single shoe. I keep picturing half-shod people darting across the freeway-- but that can't be where those shoes come from... I've never seen ANYONE dart across the freeway, shoes or no shoes!

Maybe there was some industrial-strength double-stick tape on the bottom of the rogue microwave??

I have weird thoughts like turning into a cockroach all the time and then I usually blurt them out and apparently no one else I know has those kinds of thoughts so it makes me feel good knowing you do too.

We're voting for your next vacation, right? Because I vote for Croatia. Specifically, Vis:

Right here

I mean, Here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vis_%28island%29

C.A.P. Your bravery is awesome. I would have changed lanes and let someone else sit behind him. But then I like to hide and watch the fireworks. Or not.

Laurie,

I have been reading your blog for a few years now. And LOVE it. I check almost everyday - even when I am in PERU! I have the good fortune of travelling there at least twice a year for the past 14 years. I design for a wonderful company called the Peruvian Connection. Anyway, if you ever want to go - let me know! I am also divorced (But wonderfully remarried - to a much younger man) with 5 cats, as for the drunk part....the have a great drink in Peru called a Pisco Sour. Come join us - I am convinced we would be best friends if we ever met - but maybe you hear that all the time.

Tabbetha

Again Croatia, you are teasing!
Vis? and Hvar! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hvar
I am offering free accommodation here!

In my daydreams I'm either a) living in a castle in France, or b) living in a castle in Italy. Either way, I'm floating from exquisitely decorated room to exquisitely decorated room, distributing largess to the staff, and generally behaving like a charm school graduate. Then I wake up and I'm still 5 pages behind on my 6 page paper that's due in an hour. But the daydream is always totally worth it.

http://www.france-prestige-real-estate.com/en/index.htm
http://www.lifeinitaly.com/real-estate/gallery/default.asp?DesignID=16

Enjoy!

We used to listen to the traffic report on the way into work so we could avoid the ladders in San Diego. I don't know what it is about that area that attracts people who can't be bothered to tie a ladder down, but at least twice a week, you'd hear about the ladder on I-15.

I thought the big tower-y thing was a microwave catapult. Which would also be AWESOME but maybe not on the freeway.

I was jsut thinking of you and your freeway traffic this morning - apparently Pittsburgh (where I live and daydream) has the "most courteous" drivers in America. All the morning DJs are going nuts about it. (btw, Miami was worst - LA wasn't even in the top5 - or bottom5, I guess depending on how you look at it!)

I had to read Metamorphosis for German class (which of course means I had to read it in German). Man, what a depressing story, even in a language I did not fully understand. You go to college and they make you read Kafka and Steinbeck and Sartre and Flannery O'Connor, and then they wonder why the campus psych clinic is always so busy.

Were I driving that truck I would be more concerned that someone would take advantage of the standstill traffic to snag themselves a new microwave.

I can just see you hanging out on a lanai in a sarong with a hibiscus behind one ear. You look mahvelous, dahling. (I am the tall, lissome redhead at the next table.)

I saw a dryer fall off a pickup truck onto I-70 one day. Sparks flew and everything. The guy pulled off into the berm and got out with this "aw, crap" expression.

That totally looks like the Eiffel Tower to me (with a giant microwave under it).

Dream vacation - Bimini......I have no idea why, except I just want to walk on the beach there.

I dream of running away and joining the circus. Just me and my dog, who I taught to jump through a hoop. I even have a clown costume waiting . . .

My current dream vacation would be to go to Scotland. I want to visit all sorts of places in Scotland. I want to see Edinburgh, and I want to go to Culloden Moor (famous battleground)

I also want to visit England again. Got to go there in 2001. (had a chance to go back, but it was a few weeks after 9-11 and I was not getting on a plane after that, so I turned down that trip)

England was great when I was there. I found several yarn shops! (didnt buy anything, they had some nice fancy knitting needles, but I couldnt knit then, I wanted crochet hooks)

I went to St. Ives (during flooding season) and had scones and clotted cream at a tea shop. We went to Cambridge and wandered thru the universities. And of course we went to The Tower and saw the jewels.

And all the people there were so nice. Especially in the yarn shops. I was afraid to buy yarn there. Was worried I wouldnt use it, and it would just sit there as a rememberance to my trip, instead of getting used in something.

I cant wait to go back someday. I missed getting to see Buckingham Palace the last time (we only spent one day in London, and it was all spent in The Tower. I was surprised that Henry the VIII was really not that big of a guy from what I saw of his suit of armour)

Great daydreaming vacation destinations!

I'm somewhat ashamed to admit that my own daydreams have occasionally gone to the crazy place. I have a wishlist at Anthropologie of all the things I would buy for a summer vacation in Italy if my apartment burned down the week before said trip and I had no material possessions. Crazy perhaps. But it was a fun way to spend an afternoon.

My vacation daydreams always seem to feature me suddenly being able to fluently converse in whatever language is spoken - and kicking the asses of black leather jacketed men in smoky bars. I've been watching too much Alias.

I'm well known for that. I once yelled out "cocker spaniel" in a room of clueless people who hadn't been around for my earlier conversation in which I couldn't remember what kind of dog I was thinking about.

I have to admit, my daydreaming lately has only been about the amigos. Location not important.

I need to get out of this city, though...

And I thought only in Phoenix, AZ would I find a couch in the middle of the 101! Never saw anything like that back East, but apparently it's a normal occurrence here in the West.

I love daydreaming too - but I think my fantasies are a bit more elaborate. Right now I'm dreaming I win the lottery and can buy a new car cash to replace the one that was stolen last week....yes....preferably a Mercedes or BMW. Oh, then I move to Coronado Island and from then on is all fiesta and siesta, no work.

What were you talking about? I was daydreaming...

i must make a request: i also work in a bank, but in an operations office. i have a cubicle... what else! anyway, i wish someone (YOU) could redesign your blog in such a way, as to LOOK like a business article of some kind, so i can read and not feel quilty of being seen "goofing".how about a fake XL document, or a Word styled document. the header/banner would be the top bars of an open Word article... or something like that. i work like a dog here, but don;t want folks getting the wrong impression if they should see me check your blog out once in awhile. so maybe make a second version for us cubicle folks....hee,hee,hee... i wonder if this has already been done? hmmmmmmmmm....pleeeeze?

On the truck - YIKES! I drive an open bed truck and on many models (like mine) the danger to leaving the tailgate down is not just what's in the bed of the truck unsecured, but the tailgate itself.

You may think there a hinge at the bottom like the one on a door, but no - it's actually just a sort of rod & pocket connection, so the entire tailgate can be easily lifted up and out of the way and removed. (When I say easily, I don't mean by big hefty guys, I mean by wimpy little girls like me.) When the tailgate is closed, it's secured in place by the rod & pocket connector at the bottom corners AND latched at the top. But when open it just rests on the back bumper, no top latch. So it's no stretch to imagine how easily a big bump could just bump that tailgate up and outta there.

Yep it is the same in Phoenix. We once barely missed a frig on a dolly in the middle of the lane. I like my one street town in the east now!

Yes but you DO have the talent...

I'm a big daydreamer, too. When I was little I used to call it "frinking," because it wasn't really THINKING, but it was kind of like that. I can remember trying to explain it to my dad and him just really totally understanding it.

I "frink" when I can't get to sleep; like you I have favorite daydreams, and sometimes they make me all happy and content and sleepy, when otherwise I'm laying there THINKING about stuff, which just keeps a person awake!

Maybe the microwave is powered by solar electricity?

Just as long as you're not day dreaming while driving anywhere near my vicinity. :)

I have some friends from Croatia and I've always wanted to go there too! Unfortunately, they can't go back because they came here as refugees during the war and the husband would be in big trouble if he stepped foot off a plane in Croatia. They have some fascinating stories to tell about their escape.

My boyfriend is from Brazil so I'm hoping to go there with him soon. He tells me I'll be complaining about the heat the entire time though. I admit, I do like to complain about the heat.

I had never had any great, burning desire to go to Cyprus but I went there about 13 years ago because my ex-husband went there for a year due to his job. It was really nice and I wouldn't mind visiting it again someday.

Go to Maui!!! I love Maui. Plus, it's not a long ass plane ride. The food is good, the weather is good. How can you not love a place where the height of fashionable footwear is the flip-flop?? Plus, snorkeling and mai tai's. Uh, not together though.

I highly recomend the Lahaina Luau. Great food, open bar and men dancing in short skirts.

Kauai is sooo much more relaxing & fun than Maui, which I think is too crowded (Big Island is too in parts). Maui does have Hana; but, all in all, I'd vote for Kauai....or Granada, Spain!

I fall asleep dreaming of vacations taken & those to come.

Blessings on you, girl...K.

Being a native Southern Californian, and also, a lifelong daydreamer, the only really surprising thing for me in this post, was that in Croatia they might serve drinks with fruit floating in them...thanks, I will add that detail to my daydream portfolio.
Watch out for falling microwaves, next 3 miles...

Oh, Yes! My first trip to Europe was to Andalucia - Cordoba, Granada and Seville. Just slightly more exotic than other parts of Europe. My daydream is to take every summer off, take a one month language camp in some country, then take 2 months travelling in that country to practice what I learned. Every year a different place. Adventurous dreams for my inner nerd.

Tons of daydreaming about the sun here in snowy (!) Colorado. I've decided to completely deny reality, and have started the summer "pink drink" season early. In fact, I have a wine recommendation for you. We tried a new rose yesterday for our liquor store: Mas de la Dame. Oh. My. God. Fruity and dry with so many layers of flavor, French, organic, and totally reasonable. (Read cheap - only $15 on the rack here on main street in the ski resort town. Gotta be cheaper on the coast.) Perfect for watching the zucchini take over the backyard, and doubly perfect to go with fried squash blossoms.

I am happy to hear I am not the only one who has Kafka popping into the brain at odd moments. Damn You, College Education!

I once read a Dick Francis novel about a mystery adventure train ride all across Canada and I have wanted to do it ever since.

I know a couple who escaped from Croatia - one of them is Serbian, one is Croatian. Very Romeo and Juliet. After hearing their war stories, it has never occured to me as a vacation destination. On the other hand I am a complete traveling chicken and it has gotten worse since I discovered "Locked Up Abroad" while channel surfing. Ridiculously, I Tivo it and make insane mental notes - Do not agree to smuggle drugs from Venezuala! Also do the same when watching the PBS doc "Carrier" - Do not fall off deck of aircraft carrier! As though there is some actual possibility....

You want to go to Iceland, not Greenland. Reykjavik, Iceland is hip, trendy, small and wonderful. Iceland is a stunningly beautiful. And I'm sure you would appreciate their organic food and way eco-friendly geothermal power. Truly a spectacular place.

I'm with you on Croatia! I had a friend from Croatia and she would go back every so often to visit and bring back the most awesome photos.
Peru too though I've heard (from some Peruvians I know) that it's a bit on the trecherous side for girngas. I don't know, they could be trying to scare me cause they know I'd be going to buy all the alpaca yarn and chulos I can stuff into a carry on bag. Ooooh also I'd go and drink all the Pisco....I want to go to Peru soooooo bad. My BF has family there too.

Maybe the microwave is bolted down and tied into the battery for cooking lunch?

I dream of the villa in Tuscany. And me thinner, tanner and younger.

There's nothing you can't do once you make the decision to go forward. Make it happen!

Back when I worked for The Firm, once I was driving into the valley on the beloved 405 behind a truck that looked very much like that. It had an unsecured 8 foot, metal ladder in its open flatbed. I thought, "this just isn't good" and switched lanes and drove beside the truck. Not 20 seconds after I chose to do so, the ladder flew out of the truck and straight back onto the freeway. Fortunately, nobody had taken my place, but there was quite a ruckus of cars screeching to a halt or trying to dodge the obstacle. Had I been behind that truck, most certainly I would have had a ladder go through my windshield. Yet another reason I love to loathe LA.

I thought maybe you could get out of your car and reheat your coffee in that microwave! What a public service that could be ....

This is going to sound insane, but ever since I moved away from Southern California, there are days that I actually miss the traffic! It only takes me 9 minutes to get to work now, and that leaves me with significantly less time for daydreaming and music-listening.

That is until I actually come back to LA for a few days... then I reconsider. :)

Charles Ives (Ground-breaking American Composer) also sold insurance. He said something like 'my children are not going to starve on my dissonance.' He also self-published his own music and sent copies of his works at his expense to colleges and universities all around the country.

So you can say that you are more practical than one of the preeminent American composers of our time because you sell your books for profit, or at least most of them...

My first comment! Despite having read and loved your blog for over two years now. I couldn't resist the daydreaming though - it is something I do a phenomenal amount of.

I have an entire alternative universe, fully thought out and meticulously planned, of my "other" life. I am thinner (of course), much richer thanks to several amazing real estate decisions, surrounded by wonderful men and my house is always decorator-perfect. I can wander into this wonderful world any time I want and if I meet a new hot guy or see a new sofa! No problems! It's all mine, tucked away in my very own world.

I've re-read this. I sound mental.

I vote Spain. A little Latin love would be fabulous!

Love daydreaming. Someone (yes, that's the official reference...) wrote once that only the most intelligent people daydream. Apparently it's the brain's way of getting some stimulation if it's bored.

...and now there's a crazed looking pooch in your sidebar. Bring back cross-eyed kitty, I say!

It's funny that you wrote this, because I always wondered if I was the only one constantly daydreaming. I have such long complicated daydreams involving exact conversations I will have (which of course will be witty or fabulous as the case may be), what I will be wearing and how fit I will be etc. etc. The funny thing is that sometimes the actual real-life moments seem less real than the daydreams.

It's 1:40 am only I am not in Wisconsin, I am in New York SORT OF on a vacation but not so much a fun one so I have to comment and then read the other comments tomorrow. So anyway, I am inviting you to Croatia in a semi-official capacity, because the family story is, my husband has inherited a very classy and resort-y NUDE BEACH on the Adriatic Sea, but if you come there I'll see that you get little drinks with fruit and umbrellas in and you don't have to take off you clothes if you don't want to. And in fact you and I can sit in a cabana (on account of, I'm his wife so it's sort of MY nude beach too) and we can have little opera glasses and laugh a lot.
You know, just because Croatia could really be a lot of fun and there's good food there except at Christmas, apparently.

Laurie, this has nothing to do with today's post... I just looked at your book on Amazon and under the 'Popular in these categories' heading it said...
#1 in Books > Health, Mind & Body > Men's Health > Hair Loss

????? Say what ????? Balding men are reading you avidly apparently :)

Oh boy. I love it when you do posts that make me go, A-HA, SO I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE WHO DOES THAT, and this is one of them.

I, too, am guiltily aware that we're supposed to be living in the here and now, but I still seem to spend a lot of time daydreaming about the future where I am thin, and if not tall, a lot more outgoing and poised. My own dream vacations right now are New York City and maybe Seattle, where my friends are clustered.

LOL @ pegkitty - I thought it was a trebuchet! But you're right... not on the highway.

In case you can't wait to get to Peru for that Pisco sour:
http://www.piscomall.com/

Nice to know I'm just one of many, many avid daydreamers. Sometimes it seems like I should daydream less and do more prouctive stuff. But dayreaming is just so very, very nice.

Wow, so many other daydreamers!

The unsecured pickup truck load happens in the southeast, too. Usually the debris on the roadside is a sofa cushion or a kitchen chair, but several times I've seen the shattered bureau still full of clothes.

In his time, Kafka wrote fiction. Today, he'd be a political reporter. Ditto for George Orwell.

:-/

Laurie, I live in Spain and you should come here! I just had to delurk to tell you that...

I visited a few years ago on a whirlwind solo trip (much like yours to Rome), met my future husband and ended up moving here last year!

I love checking in on your blog when I´m feeling homesick, because you resemble, act like, talk like and drink like my friends back in Atlanta.

...and by the way, in some ways, I think that the southerner´s outlook meshes perfectly with Spanish culture! OK, that´s my push, vete a España! ;)