Every person needs to take one day away.

A day in which one consciously separates the past from the future.  Jobs, family, employers, and friends can exist one day without any one of us, and if our egos permit us to confess, they could exist eternally in our absence.  Each person deserves a day away in which no problems are confronted, no solutions searched for.  Each of us needs to withdraw from the cares which will not withdraw from us.

Maya Angelou

Guys. I'm so lame. I have yet to post pictures of Rio and we've already had another trip. Not to a far off destination, but Portland, Maine is pretty high up there on my list of favorite places. This poor little corner of the interweb has been woefully neglected. 

Last night I had a moment: I could be headed for a serious funk. "Mario!" said I. "I am now officially in funk-prevention mode. I'm going to Zumba with you tonight. Only this time I won't walk out. I'll work through the annoyance and frustration. For the whole hour. Also, I'm going to sell our stuff on Craigslist. And I'm going to finally take on some freelance work like I've talked about. And I'm going to get back on a CrossFit schedule. And I'm going to blog regularly again. And, and, and. I can feel the inevitable pre-life-changing move/not working/done with my formal education for now/post-vacation funk approaching. I won't let it happen!" 

"Um, what does this have to do with tonight's Zumba class?" said he.

My point is this: I've got to get my poop in a group. (What a gloriously gross saying.) I don't do well with too much idle time. I also have to get back to a reliable schedule once vacations are over or I go full-on honey badger in two days flat. January I was in vacation prep mode. CrossFit and Kiddo and this and that kept my mind occupied. Then came February and a rather delicious vacation. I could feel my toes for one blissful week. We had one week to adjust back to real life before Kiddo's winter break started. (One of those five days ended up being a snow day.) Then last week it was back into vacation mode. I'm not complaining! Sleeping until 7a is a luxury these days. Plus, we packed up a small bag and spent four lovely days in Portland where Mario was working. So now I have to fix my brain space. Go back to the gym. Write rambling blog posts. Put myself out there and ask if I can write for other people. Take photos of the antique dresser in our basement and my abandoned jewelry-making supplies. Sell both. (And everything else that cannot or should not move with us.) Finish my photography eBook. Do things that are good for me even if they make me uncomfortable (like Zumba).

Yesterday I spent the better part of an afternoon organizing my photos. Deleting, creating files, naming... it was quite the undertaking. Holy moly was I unorganized in the very early days of grownup camera ownership. I used Eye-Fi which automatically downloaded all my photos onto my laptop and placed them in files by date. The folder marked "Winter 2013" had over 60 files of assorted photos. Some of them were just plain weird. Like the close-up of Kiddo's belly button. The next step is sorting and rating them in Photoshop so I can easily access them. (Anyone have this rather daunting experience?) Aside from the occasional Pinterest photo or those pulled from a retailer's website, I try to only use my own photos. Which means I've been building my own collection of stock photos. Except I can't find the one I need because it is named "DSC_0125" rather than "coffee and laptop". I'm a mess, folks.

Are you still there? Oh, good. Here's my solemn vow: I will have at least one Rio post and my Portland post up by the end of the week. Otherwise I lose my TV privileges until they are done. (This is a promise to myself. I'm not so self centered as to assume you are waiting with baited breath for me to put fingers to keyboard. If you are, gosh, you are the bee's knees.) I'm also going to attempt to write a blog post before the day I am posting it. Apparently real bloggers do such radical things and I aspire, always, to be that organized. Baby steps my friends.

How about some random photos to go with this stream-of-consciousness post? Great!

// A bonafide beauty bonanza occurred. Blame it on misbehaving skin, winter-burnout, and an inability to find the perfect products as of late. I'd normally feel guilty indulging in such a fashion, but not this time. A beauty reboot was long overdue. // I've been trying new brow products over the last few months (i.e. since I realized my brows deserved my attention) but not one has struck my fancy. I'm excited about this waxy-in-a-good-way formula by Too Faced. // I had an exfoliating spa treatment in Rio and loved the way my skin felt afterward. I'm lazy most days, it's too cold to stand around wet and sans clothing, and we only have a shower stall in our master bath; all of which stand between me and a good scrubbing. I'm a fan of Lush's formulas (though I mostly consider them a splurge). Let's do this. // I've been milking a deluxe sample of Boscia's Black Cleanser for months. This stuff is awesome. I now have the cleanser, hydrating gel, and all three masks (I couldn't decide on just one). I have always been a fan of their products, but this line may have made me an official convert. //

// I'm really trying to stick to tea; only indulging in coffee when I really crave it. I feel much better now that I've cut back, but some days tea just doesn't do it. What's the solution on a day when your nerves can't handle coffee but tea isn't cutting it? // Portland, Maine has some of the best restaurants. Like Flatbread Company (which now has many locations). I really, really admire chalkboard art. // Mr. Vista is officially back to normal! He was miserable for a solid week, and I felt like I had a sick furry infant on my hands, but he's cone-free and feeling fancy free. And it only cost us about two grand. He's so worth it. // I am choosing to believe in the power of positive thinking. Like buying flip-flops in single digit temps. Spring will come. Spring will come. I will be warm again... //

// A trip to the Portland area necessitates a visit to the L.L. Bean flagship store in Freeport, Maine. It's open 24/7 and chock full of canvas totes and tents and all the things I want but rarely never use. I'm going to start camping more. // Can we take a moment to appreciate a Cracker Barrel breakfast? Sides for days. I really miss having access to this joint. I also wonder how many sides of grits go uneaten in the northern U.S. stores each year. // I'm not outdoorsy. As implied above. I don't shoot things or eat meat not found in a store. But what is it about a Cabella's that makes me want to get all gun-totin' and rustic? //

// Dude. This kid. He's something special. Staying in a hotel and eating at all his favorite places and going where he likes to go for a week allows me to see through the eyes of a rather spectacular 13-year-old boy. What a fascinating world he lives in. //

 // The boys spent the second half of Saturday skiing, bonding, eating giant cookies and, well, being boys. I used that rarest of free time to watch the first season of Girls (I'm a convert), make and eat peach pancakes for dinner, and apply aforementioned face masks. Long overdue leg hair removal also occurred, and one can be assured I will no longer be mistaken for Sasquatch. I live a riveting existence, no? //

See you tomorrow! (Promise.)