Ocean

They lay it on thick here in southern California.

On Tuesday the Summers went kayaking at La Jolla Cove, where the water was so warm and so blue I could have melted into it. An intrepid Partner and his wife took us kayaking at sunset, when the sunlight leapt across the ocean. We paddled up to a pod of sea lions and witnessed other wildlife from afar. The water was still enough for rank beginners such as I not to feel afraid but to feel like we were experts. We paddled about the cove for about an hour and half, and when it was time to head back in, my partner and I rode a wave right back to shore. Rockin'.

Afterwards, we settled into a local restaurant where we racked up enough points on the Partner's credit card to fund his next round-trip flight home to the midwest. Better than the food, though, was the fellowship. We're nine weeks into our summer program, and we've grown together. We talked, we laughed, and we felt completely comfortable. Of course, Offers always are at the back of our minds, but each of us has come to know an exceptional group of people, and for that I am especially grateful. I expected to be friendly with my co-workers, but I never expected to be their friend.

Celebrities

My sister is pals with one of Capitol Hill's fifty most beautiful people. I once ran into the guy at Kramerbooks in DuPont, and he recognized me, so that makes me pals with him, too.

I love famous people.

http://thehill.com/cover-stories/the-50-most-beautiful-
people-on-capitol-hill---
40-more-contd-2007-07-25.html

Shout, shout, get it all out....

...these are readers I can't do without, come on! [FN1]

Ms. Jenski, who is in the lead for the Most Posted Comments Award.

Ms. J, whom I believe to be an alumna of a certain institution between the foothills and the bay.

Mr. Jersey, aka LRev, who introduced the Captain to me as "The Guy Who Used to Scare Me." Best of luck on the Bar, LRev. We don't call you LRev for nothing!


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FN1. Regular readers will recognize this as another reference to the Tears for Fears concert I am about to attend. I'm thinking about dressing up in period costume. Suggestions?

Harry Harry Harry

The New York Times has some nerve. Photos of children dressed up as wizards. Articles about books sales. PLOT SPOILERS. It's impossible to find out what's going on in the world without running into Harry.

But I don't want to run into Harry, at least not yet. My plucky little book is making its way all the way from England, and I want to treasure it when it gets here. San Diego is a far away place.

Doesn't The Times know that?

Run for Dessert

My horse came in last.

But he was my horse, that was clear. With a name like "Run for Dessert," even Summer Associates who've known me only a matter of weeks knew that that was colt for me.

Which makes me wonder, have I embraced too tightly my reputation as a homing beacon for dessert? No one wants to be The One Who Always Knows Where the Food Is. Thing is, I do always know where the food is.

My talent can be uncanny. When my family vacationed in Prague, a city in which I never had set foot, I directed my parents and sister, sans guidebook or recommendation, to a place that served the most delectable cakes and strudels. Granted, every tourist place in Prague serves cakes and strudels, but this place stood out. The coffee was especially good, and the ambience particularly charming. Even the bathroom was nice - the only 'A' bathroom we found, and we had used quite a few. Until Prague, I had thought my memory for dessert was limited only to cities in which I had lived. Wrong.

Of course, loving dessert has its upsides. The Captain got a second date even before we went on our first date because he told me our first date included ice cream-stuffed cupcakes. And see how well that's turned out.

Ridiculousness

I have three weeks left of work, and it's starting to feel like it.

One of the other summer associates, Good Neighbor (so named because he sits next to me), had this to say about the next several weeks:

[T]here are going to be breakfast treats on this floor on three out of the next six work days. I suspect we might also have birthday cake on one of those days. During the next eleven calendar days we have horse races, kayaking, two softball games, a beach party and "Shout, shout, let it all out, these are the things I can do without, come on, I'm talking to you, come on!" [FN1]

And by the close of business, we added "Dinner at a beachfront condo."

It's good to be a Summer Associate.

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FN1. The lyric refers to the Tears for Fears concert the Summers are attending in two weeks.

More Pilates

Today I went to another Pilates class, but I'm still upright and ambulatory.

Frankly, I feel cheated.