Tag: travel

convos with strangers, travel

conversations with strangers #5

abby mumford

even though my mom taught me not to, here’s why i’m talking with strangers.

i was dining al fresco with mom, dad, and sister E in sorrento, italy. the patio was packed, so it felt like we were at a table for 16 rather than a table for four.

dad paid the bill. the waiter grinned at the tip left. (they sure loved us americans.)

waiter: he’s a good man.

mom: yes, he is. we’re been married 40 years this year.

man from the table next to us: i don’t mean to eavesdrop, but i have to say, congrats!

mom: thanks!

man: *gestures to wife* we’re at 33 years this year!

mom: congrats to you too as well!

man: thanks!

and with grins wide from wine and long lasting relationships, we left.

feelings

book recommendations

abby mumford

now that i’ve embraced (and publicly so) my love of YA, i find myself often being asked for recommendations. like elizabeth, i find the pressure somewhat daunting. and since i know a lot of you won’t click on that link, i’m going to copy and paste because i agree with a lot of what she says:

“So the official book for October’s reading was my responsibility, and, you guys?  I almost caved under the pressure.  I do not like choosing books for other people unless I know them REALLY REALLY well.  That means the only people I don’t majorly stress over when I’m asked to recommend books are my mom and my best friend.  That’s it.  And “don’t majorly stress over” can be translated into “I’m only mildly anxious.”  And since all of you are readers, I’m sure you know how often people assume that all books are equal opportunity good, and that you, as a reader, must know which ones are the good ones and can share that secret with them so that they don’t have to waste their time or something, sorting through all the other books until they stumble across those gems.  In other words: I get lots of requests to recommend stuff.   And it is total torture.

In my opinion, books are like presents. Everyone likes a good present, right?  The classics are usually like those educational presents that your great aunt gets you for Christmas.  I mean, yeah, it’s probably good for you, and you’ll likely end up appreciating the learning experience or whatever, but they’re rarely truly fun. Science fiction is like those tech gifts that always end up on those magazine lists adamantly declaring that they’re the must-have for men, despite the fact that there’s no reason women wouldn’t like them too (and often do), whether it’s a GPS or Anne McCaffrey’s The Ship Who Searched (the lovely story about a delightful young girl who grows up to become a spaceship).  And romance novels therefore have to be the generic “girl” gifts of nice smelling soaps, either bland, nice enough, and ubiquitous, like a Danielle Steele novel, or delightfully, unexpectedly rich, the fancy chocolate of “girl” gifts: J.D. Robb.  I’m going to go with J.D. Robb over Nora for the fancy chocolate because I think Eve and Roarke are just as likely to appeal to guys as Godiva is.  The key is picking what you know that specific person will appreciate and making sure you label all the boxes correctly.  I mean, your brother is probably less likely to appreciate that Mary Engelbreit pressure cooker, and your mom likely won’t get as much use out of that book on So Gross! facts, you know?

So, back to the book club, and the daunting task of choosing something for everyone to read.  Of course everyone reassured me multiple times that this is about expanding our horizons and you should never try to pick something that everyone will like, and that you should just try to choose something that you think everyone should be exposed to, and of course I promptly ignored that advice because what is this, school?  This is supposed to be fun.  I was all set to choose Robin D. Owens’ Heart Fate when one club member mentioned that she doesn’t enjoy reading any graphic love scenes, so I double checked, and the love scenes were a touch more graphic than I remember, so I nixed that idea.  Though it’s a delightful book, for anyone who really likes a slightly different romance novel, with some unexpected depth to the story.  That particular series is fun, though you don’t have to read them all to get what’s going on, but that book in particular stood out for me.

So now that you guys all have context for why I chose what I chose, and since reading is all about context, I felt compelled to share.  You’re welcome.”

i can usually only remember the BIG, BOOM, I HEARTED IT books off the top of my head at a moment’s notice. it’s a shame because this is the chance to rave about the lesser know, smaller, yet just as charming books. although, that type of recommendation require a knowledge of the person you’re suggesting books to. although, on the other hand, when people ask me for my opinion, it’s a chance for me to spread YA love and i’ve got plenty of that to go around.

and you know what? it’s really fun when someone comes back to you after they’ve read what you suggested and you can gush about it. like last month, a coworker walked into my office with her tween daughter who was carrying CATCHING FIRE.

coworker: i had to bring R by and tell you that your recommendation was spot on.

(bear in mind that despite my insistence that it was appropriate for her age, coworker didn’t like the sound of HUNGER GAMES and so declined that recommendation. i followed it up with a different choice, which i can’t recall at the moment, but see, the lure of HG and CG and MJ hits everyone, even if you try to run away from it. *cough* linda *cough*)

me: *smiles* *nods*

coworker: R found the books on her own and is devouring them, so i should have listened to you. in fact, i think i’m going to start reading the series too.

me: *smiles* *nods*

so i’m going to revise my stance on recommendations. go ahead, ask away! leave a comment at the beep. (i can’t promise i’ll be as amazing as michelle hodkin, but i’ll try.)

*beep*

feelings

reason #32 to stay up past your bedtime

abby mumford

GUSTER.

they are one of those bands that blow you away EVERY SINGLE TIME you see them live. and i’ve seen them more times than i can count. they just have this charisma on stage that doesn’t translate to CD. they truly enjoy their fans and that, in turn, makes it even more fun to see them over and over.

and you know what makes a guster concert EVEN MORE FUN than usual? going with two friends, one of whom doesn’t know he’s going.

i’m normally a professional sekrit keeper. i never even let on that i know any information, let alone do the “i know something you don’t know” song and dance. and up until yesterday, this was no exception. in fact, the fall has been going so fast (seriously, we’re only 2 days away from november? huminah, what?) that the guster concert snuck up on me. (read: i forgot about it) but it worked out supremely well because i saw L&N last weekend, and that could have been prime sekrit slipping time.

but nope. N had no clue what L and i were planning. in fact, N didn’t even know i was joining in on the festivities until he saw my sweet ride (shocks. pegs. LUCKY.) driving into the parking lot. i was so excited (and admittedly, a bit hopped up on sugar free red bull) that as i waved hello, slid into the car and heard my phone’s google calendar event reminder, i grabbed my phone, waved it around, and yelled, “GUSTER CONCERT!!!!!!!”

*crickets chirping*

N grinned, but looked over at wifey L to see if he was allowed to know the details of tonight’s event. L sputtered, “but he didn’t know yet.”

oops.

and just like that, i was given the pink slip out of the professional ranks of sekrit keeping.

fortunately, we were now able to have N (a portland, ME local) drive us to a good restaurant and then find us street parking without us having to throw him off the scent. or having to have L drive and me navigate. (we all know what happens when i’m in charge of directions…) and fortunately, the release of the sekrit didn’t detonate any fireworks or tempers or contracts on my life. and seeing guster live (again) was as amazing as we were anticipating. those boys sure put in a lot of practice and it shows in the show. the lights. the sounds. the talking to the audience. brian singing the “50 states” song. the new songs. the old songs. it’s all genius.

i wanted to SHARE some guster with you, but i couldn’t find a proper video of them live (not that it would have done them any justice because a video of them live doesn’t equate to actually being in the same room with them), so instead, here’s a little acoustical lullabye.

you’re welcome.

and next time they’re at a venue near you, stock up on red bull, caffeine, and wave goodbye to your pillow. trust me, it’s worth the lost beauty sleep.

 

oops.

travel

travel-o-city

abby mumford

i’ve found myself in more planes, trains, buses, cabs, and cars in september/october than i have over the course of the entire rest of the year. i suppose this is why my summer was so slow. it was the calm before the frenzy of fall travel. as i sit here, in my apartment, sandwiched between two weekends away, i can’t help but think about the art of traveling.

AIR TRAVEL. this route allows you to go the further the fastest. great for international and cross country travel. however, with all of the security measures at airports, you have to make sure your shoes are easy to slip on/off, that your carry on bag can in fact fit into the overhead compartment, that your jewelry/accessories/coat/sweater are easy to take off so you don’t send that metal detector into a beeping fit, and that all your toiletries are 3 oz or less and fit into one minuscule zip lock bag. your ipod (or cd player and stack of cd’s, if that’s how you roll) is a must to drown out the crying babies OR seat mate who can’t take the hint that you’d rather sleep (or watch tv or pull out your own fingernails) than hear about their aunt linda’s nephew’s twin sister’s daughter who wrote a really awesome book about napkins that should totally be published by the company you work for.

ROAD TRAVEL. this option allows you the most control. you drive the car. you pick the route. you can see what’s going on ahead, behind, and next to you at all times. you can pack as much as you want. in no particular shape or form or container. however, there are other cars (with idiot drivers) in them that you have to contend with. and bathrooms aren’t readily accessible. and radio stations come and go. and traffic. you never know exactly when or where or how long you’ll be stuck there. and those cops sure know how to show up just when you press the accelerator.

RAIL TRAVEL. this option deletes the traffic on the road problem, but it’s about as expensive as a flight, without the quickness factor. it takes about the same time as driving (well, if you drove on roads without other cars or construction). it’s got almost the same (must fit into the overhead compartment) packing issues as the plane, but it does not have the whole security thing. which means, oh yeah, liquids in a container larger than 3 ounces. party! of course, all of this applies to US trains. if you’re in, say, italy, YOU SHOULD TAKE THE TRAIN. the system is practically flawless. the destinations are endless. and, well, you’ve probably already got your tiny suitcase packed from the plane ride over.

BUS TRAVEL. this is by far the most economical. the most expensive ticket i’ve ever purchased was $13. and that one i giggled at because, really, $13. i can totally afford that. (i should have paid more attention to the evil sounding 13. it was just the start of a horrid bus ride home. let’s just say that megabus has the worst customer service ever. both rides (to and from NYC) were beyond ridiculous. i got there in one piece, so yes, that was good, but no, i’ll never take them again. i’ll cough up $4 more to take the bolt bus.) you can pack a bag with no size restrictions because the undercarriage of the bus can hold a lot of luggage. and there are no security measures, so again, party on with your big bottles. (of course, you must keep in mind that you still have to take public transportation to and from the bus, so you’ll have to drag/carry whatever you packed. think of your back! and the uneven brick sidewalks! pack light.) there is that road traffic to contend with, so keep that in mind while planning the trip, especially if you’re going into Manhattan around rush hour. eesh. bad idea.

and now that you have my travel breakdown, let’s hope your (or my) plane, train, car, or bus doesn’t break down on your next trip away from home.

travel

flight [home] of the conchords

abby mumford

today’s the 14th and before we go any further at all, i want to say, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DR. carrie.

with that on the table, can you guess where in the world i am? anyone? bueller? bueller?

you probably guessed italy. and you’d be WRONG because by the time you’re reading this, it’s approximately, oh i don’t know, afternoon time in europe which means i am currently winging my way back to the US with a quick stop over in frankfurt. and by quick stop, i mean a 2 hour layover. that should give me enough time to see all the germanic sights. or well, give me plenty of time to work my way through the terminal to the plane that will deliver me back to boston.

speaking of flights, here’s a little treat to distract you from how much you miss me.

classy, no? (side note to TB, thank you for introducing that to me).

speaking of thank you’s, the reason you’re even able to read this is because i am now privy to the “scheduling” capabilities of wordpress. and how do i know about it? that’d be because of patty blount (she of twitter and book hungry fame). all together now, kids, THANKS, PATTY.

and all of this means that i can wish one of my besties a happy birthday, since i can’t do that from italy or germany or an airplane. also, i wished her a happy day now because there’s a large chance that when i touch down in boston, i’ll be so delirious, i won’t know what day it is, what time it is, or who i am, much less that i’m supposed to be wishing people happy birthdays and many mores.

did somone say s’more?

yum. go get one! and save some for me.