On the Road Again
January 22nd, 2007 | Posted by Shannon
Yes, I am alive. Just on the road… one week down and three weeks to go. I’ve listened to Anthony Bourdain read “A Cook’s Tour” (twice) and driven over the Golden Gate Bridge (twice) listening to Spoon’s “A Mathematical Mind” (both times.) For the past few days I have been taking care of my 15 month old nephew Ryan. Kind of. Actually I have been helping my mom take care of my nephew. I have learned that it is virtually impossible to watch a fifteen month old by yourself. Not impossible, I guess, because people do it all the time. Maybe the right word is exhausting. I don’t know how people do it. As a single, childless person, I can do whatever I want. If I wake up with a hangover and decide to lay on the couch all day, I can do it. If you have a kid, that’s just not a possibility. I already had a lot of respect for the job of a parent. Now I have a sort of awe going on. How on earth do you do it with more than one? Also, if I was a parent I think I would be constantly worried that the kid was going to choke on something or fall off the slide at the park or somersault themselves into a head injury.
Tonight is our last night. I have a sort of empty feeling in there somewhere, along with the borderline exhaustion and emerging homesickness. I did learn a new skill – changing a diaper without puking. I have never changed a diaper before now, and I am forty-one years old.
It’s been a dream of mine to have no home, and to just travel around and blog about it. But I am not so sure I am really cut out for that anymore. Could be age, could be that I really love where I live and don’t want to leave for too long. Like being gone a month is… hard. Even with constant movement, with seeing all my old friends up here in the Bay Area.
So. Onward. I wish I had time to write what I wanted to write about the Golden Gate Bridge, I wish I had time to write about my now almost overpowering desire that I could not only meet Anthony Bourdain, but that I could BE Anthony Bourdain. About Top Chef: everyone knows what a mess this season is, and how it should be about the food (but not Kraft or Nestle) and not about these weird, petty squabbles. It’s just getting really old now.
I’m off to Sacramento tomorrow for the Unified Grape Symposium, one of the only trade shows I like working. I’ll try to write more after. Also, I had to turn off comments because I was getting spammed pretty bad, so go ahead, authenticate yourself. You know you want to.
January 31st, 2007 at 10:10 pm
hey shannon,
i am so envious of your trip to san francisco. i miss sf and wellington reminds me of the city and of tiburon quite a bit. the green rolling hills, quaint little houses dotting them and the unique weather system is similar. i had the wildest, funnest times of my life there and many of my fondest memories were shared with you.
i too love anthony bourdain. did you ever see the episode of a cook’s tour when he went to the french laundry and thomas keller made him that marlborough tobacco flan because he didn’t want him to have to leave the table for a smoke? what the fuck!?! he frickin’ inhaled it. he is the rock star of chefs, no doubt.
i too wonder how mothers take care of small children without losing their minds. as the mother of 2, i takes all i can muster not to lose it some days. my boys are 16 months and 3 years 4 months and i go to bed pretty early these days. i have never respected my mom more than i do now and that repspect grows every day.
have fun at the symposium!
love,
lisa
ps have you seen “brick”? it is a really good film noir set in present day and filmed at san clemente high school. a good rental.