Rob #9 - Don't Stop Believin'

[SDFoundGirl]

Ah, snow. Something I do not miss not at all. I spent my day at the beach in the sun!

Good for you for encouraging W to spend some extra time in London. I know that traveling has done more to empower me than almost anything else in my life. Of course, W needs to make the final decision on her own. She may or may not be up for the challenge.

Glad to hear all is well. PLEASE eat some very yummy Chicago style pizza for me. They have that style out here, but it just isn't the same. In fact, I miss all that greasy bad filled with double happiness yummy goodness kind of food out here. *sigh*

Have fun in Chicago--it's a GREAT city!!!

SD

[Rob1231]

Good idea on the pizza - will have to grab some!

D loves Broadway shows, so I checked into what we could see. We just went to see "Wicked" when it was in town a few months ago - that's her absolute favorite. She actually just redid her bathroom in a "Wicked" theme, having asked for stuff for Christmas like pink and green towels. We worked together to paint a massive map of Oz on the wall, and she built a Clockwork Dragon to hang over it, so it looks like the curtain from the stage show. Came out very cool!

I didn't get tickets to see the play again - instead, I discovered there is a behind-the-scenes tour available on the night we will be in town, where you get to go up on the stage, see the props, makeup, etc. as they prepare for that evening's performance. She doesn't even know this tour exists - gonna be a terrific surprise for her. I am SUCH a cool Dad sometimes.

[Trip]

Yes, a very cool dad. Your daughter is going to be surprised for sure.

[Rob1231]

The Latest and Greatest from the Land of Rob....

D16 (still having a hard time remembering the 16 there!) left last Saturday morning for W's parents' house. W didn't leave until that night. In my head, this equaled a perfect opportunity for ML, particularly since W had most of her packing and planning done by Friday (otherwise, I know the stress of preparing would have been a real issue). To make a long story short, although I was geared up to initiate - W beat me to the punch. Yea!

Had a couple of days all by myself then. Could have gone out and GALed with friends, but I gave myself permission to be totally a hermit - watched TV, ate junk food, worked out several times - just enjoying having no commitments or schedules, beyond what I set for myself. It was very cool, at least for that relatively short time!

D16's flight to Chicago on Tuesday was delayed almost two hours - meaning we missed the "Wicked" back stage tour. She was very disappointed, but for once did not take this out on me - maybe she is growing up a little after all. I was prepared for Drama With A Capital D. We resolved to have fun in spite of this, and the next day (mostly shopping until Dad's eyes were crossing and feet were sore) went pretty well.

We also stopped and saw some of my relatives on the trip back from Chicago to home. Nothing too exciting there.

W has been calling or emailing every day from her globe-trotting trip. She really liked London, but at this point she is in Tokyo and feeling very worn down by the pace and the different agendas of her co-travelers (half her age and more interested in shopping than history/sightseeing). I am "validating" my butt off and trying to help her chill out from the other side of the world. Will be glad when she gets home, which won't be for several more days.

All in all, it has been an "OK" week - nice to have a break from work, at least.

[Jen_Jam]

Could have gone out and GALed with friends, but I gave myself permission to be totally a hermit - watched TV, ate junk food, worked out several times - just enjoying having no commitments or schedules, beyond what I set for myself. It was very cool, at least for that relatively short time!

I don't know - sometimes a big session of Chillaxing can do wonders! I did a lot of this in my GAL stage ... just took each day as it came and enjoyed it for what it offered.

All sounds great in the land of Rob ... glad your W liked London too, I used to hate the place but if you look hard enough it does have its good areas.

[Rob1231]

Thanks Jen!

glad your W liked London too, I used to hate the place but if you look hard enough it does have its good areas.

Well, W has always been a huge history buff - particularly anything to do with WW II. She spent much of her first day in London at the Churchill war rooms and the Imperial War Museum - very cool stuff!

[Jen_Jam]

Ah in that case, yes the museums ARE good.

My favourite area is round the Tower of London/Tower Bridge/London Bridge station - it has a really old feel about the place. And there are a few fine pubs that way too!

[Rob1231]

Just a little update - I'm doing something fun and wanted to share.

W and I both have birthdays at the end of this month. I was struggling with choosing what to get her, and decided to do something "unexpected." I am planning and arranging a trip to Las Vegas for the two of us, in May.

Now, it's important to remember that one of W's big complaints was always that I didn't do enough planning of activities for us. That went from little stuff ("What are we going to do tonight?") to big stuff (vacations). Of course, part of the problem has always been that W is an Uber-Planner, to the extent that she starts choosing our next vacation destination in the car on the way home from the previous one - it's a little hard to get "ahead" of someone like that!

Anyways, we've talked for years that we would like to go see Vegas - neither of us has ever been there, and it seems like somewhere worth checking out at least once in your life! We're not really into gambling, but there are plenty of other fun things to see and do. So, I have already got plane tickets, reservations at one of the nifty themed hotels (the Luxor), tickets for the Cirque du Soleil show "Love" that's based on the music of the Beatles, and tickets for a Rat Pack "tribute show". I also conspired with W's boss to block out a few days of her calendar at work.

D16 is in on the plan (keeping it as a surprise until W's birthday - all W knows is I am getting a joint present for us so she shouldn't get me anything). Although D16 is jealous of missing out on the shows, she says she wants me and W to have a fun time for just the two of us. I'm really glad she "gets it".

[SDFoundGirl]

Vegas...it's a FUN place, Rob. The only place where I've had more be-bad fun is New Orleans, so hopefully that'll give you some perspective!

Great food, good people watching, some really strange and oddball things, great shows...I HATE to gamble, and I still loved Vegas.

You'll love Cirque du Soleil if it's anything like the show I saw. It is just amazing the level of talent these people have! H got us tickets to a show that was here about a month or so ago, and it's one of the coolest things I've ever seen.

If you rent a car, definitely drive out to the desert. There's nothing so amazing as how quiet and beautiful the desert is.

So, yay! I've actually been thinking about doing something similar for my H. H is definitely the planner, and I suck at it.

Good for you! I know you'll have so much fun!!!

SD

[Rob1231]

Thanks for the vote of confidence, SD! I really want to see a Cirque show, but realize it's a bit on the "weird" side for W - figured the one based on Beatles tunes looks more "accessible" than most, if that makes sense. (You know, the old me would probably have skipped it since W wouldn't be 100% excited about it - but the new me knows I need to stick up for what *I* want too!)

I thought about getting a car, or taking a tour of Red Rock Canyon. In the end, I decided with just 2 days there, it would be better to stick to the Strip and just immerse ourselves in The Vegas Experience.

Interesting that you've been thinking of doing something similar. Go for it! I'm having lots of fun knowing that the trip will be a hit, and my having done all of the planning will be an even BIGGER hit. (Sometime it pays to do the unexpected, right?)