The beautiful Northeast and another road trip... coming up!

Wow, we had another beautiful weekend here in the Northeast. There’s a line in a Tom Waits song that goes, “Never saw the east coast till I moved to the west” and I certainly know what he means. I’ve really enjoyed being back here this past summer, and I’m appreciating the fall foliage like never before. Let me share some pics.

This is what Helderberg Lake in rural Albany County looked like last Saturday.

I took these two on Sunday at Reichard's Lake in Rensselaer County.  When I was little, my grandmother's family had a camp on this lake.

Here's one of Warner's Lake in East Berne.  I took this on my way to work yesterday.

Just about every photo I’ve posted in the past few months was taken with my iPhone 4. Not bad, huh? Damn, I love that thing.

Anyway, when I lived here I used to get depressed as hell once autumn came because I knew all too well what was coming. When I was a kid I didn’t seem to mind it, but once I started schlepping babies around, winter turned into a major pain in the ass and I haven’t been able to tolerate it since. I freakin’ hate the cold. And wind. And snow.

But this year… it’s a joy to see the colors of fall because I know that in two weeks and four days, I’ll be packing up my little Scion for another cross-country road trip back to Las Vegas! Yep. I know how much you enjoyed traveling with me and my sister Lori last May, and though we have time constraints on this trip—we have to be in Vegas by November 7—it’s still going to be a blast. And this time DeeDee Idaho, a.k.a. Mom, is going along for the ride. Call the TV executives, I smell a reality show in the making!

Yep, Mom’s flying into Albany two weeks from today. I can't wait--I haven't seen her since Mother's Day and I never go that long between visits. Then the three of us and my bags of crap head west on Saturday the 30th. You may recall that Lori drove every friggin’ mile on our trip last spring, and she swears she’ll do it again. BTW, my driving is NOT that bad, contrary to what Lori and beloved daughter Courtney would have you believe in this video Court made a couple of weeks ago on our way home from Lake Placid.



Whatev. Ha!

Anyway, my last day of work in Schenectady will be the 29th, and then I start working virtually from Las Vegas on November 8. I’m incredibly psyched that they’ve extended my contract until mid-December. After then, we’ll see. I’ll take whatever I can get; it’s a good gig. And though I’ll miss my friends and family, I’m also incredibly psyched to be getting back to Mike. We’ve done a good job handling the distance, but enough is enough. I’m really looking forward to the next phase of our relationship.

So much to look forward to! I know we’re supposed to live in the present moment, but having a lot to look forward to sure makes the present even sweeter.

One last thing: I have only a few copies of Bastard Husband: A Love Story left with me here in Albany. If it’s been a twinkle in your eye to order it, don’t delay. I have a stash in Las Vegas—and you can always order through Amazon—but if you want a signed copy soon, now’s the time! For some reason, sales are more brisk lately—yay!