Gosh, the car is clean

Well, there was the weekend of preparing for the parents' visit. The weekend of their actual visit (which was a lot of fun, though their idea of a good restaurant is decidedly different from ours). Then the weekend (apparently) of recovery--we took three-hour naps last Sunday. This, then, is the weekend of catching up.

One of my catch-up tasks was to vacuum the car. You know when you notice that the floor mats on the car are dirty? And then you think, "I need to clean them." And then you don't. And it's wintertime. And you don't clean them for a good long time. Then all of a sudden you DO clean them. Well, when that happens you are--or at least I am--astonished by the cleanliness of the car mats the next four times (and counting) you get into the car. It's truly amazing how much of an impact such a little thing can make.

Bummed

Oh my gosh, I had a dream this morning: My sister and I were visiting a town I used to live in when I was in first grade. A Mexican fast-food place that I remember fondly had been torn down to make way for a Taco Bell. I was so upset that I was crying in the dream and I woke up. Got on the web, and it's true! That particular small chain appears to have only 3-5 outlets left. It was greasy and not particularly good, so I suppose it's no big loss to the American consumer but it just feels like an intensely personal violation of my childhood (despite the fact that it's been a good 7-10 years since I've eaten at the place). Weird.

I've been obsessed with food lately. I bought a Zagat guide the other night, and I ordered four restaurant.com certificates for the next time we're in the City. I've researched Dinner Broker options for our trips to Miami and Tucson (six and seven months away, respectively), and I've been thinking about which restaurants we're going to take my parents to when they visit. My body must be deprived of something!