Back to DC, Babysitting, and Blue Nails

I have three agenda items today:

1. The State Department finally called me to set a start date, and the first day of my new job will be August 20.

This is perfect, really, because my lease ends on July 30. Then my mom is coming out the first week of August to drive back across the country with me. I think we're going to stop in Santa Fe and/or Taos, head up to Denver to stay with my brother's family, and then book it home (there's not much between Denver and Virginia, as I discovered two years ago).

To prove my point, here are some pictures Miguel and I took during the drive in 2005...

This is close to the town where I grew up in Maryland. (I told you it was in the sticks... Hey VM -- this is really close to your old house on Hawbottom Rd.!!!)

This is on the way to Oxford, Ohio...

... near where I went to college as an undergrad. Also in the sticks.

This is either in southern Illinois or in Missouri...

... yet another reason why I avoid the Midwest.

The Cracker Barrel is also evil...


... And Kansas just keeps going and going...


... and going and going and going...

Oh! I can't wait to do this drive again in August in my non-air conditioned 1988 Honda! Woo hoo!

2. On to the next topic... the 4-year old I babysit, AKA "M.," apparently hates me... as of today.

I showed up at their door this morning, and she came skulking up next to her dad and told him that not only did she hate me, but that she did not want to spend one minute with me today. Then she punched her dad in the chest when he got down to talk to her. As a result, she got sent to "time out," and after a mini-counseling session with her father, it was determined that "M. thinks you are strict and have too many rules."

My opinion? I think the sentence featuring the phrase "she punched her dad in the chest" should say it all.

Please let August arrive soon.

3. I am going to Vegas this coming weekend to have a belated birthday celebration with Ingrid and a bunch of our friends ...


In preparation for the big event, I decided to get a pedicure.

I had painted my own toenails about two weeks ago in an effort to save $$$, and I used a pearlescent copper color that I had received as a free gift from Lancome.

When I showed my nails to Ingrid last week, in hopes of receiving positive feedback, all I got was a scrunched up nose, a small grimace, and the comment: "It looks like a color my mom would use."* When I turned to Katie for back-up, she replied, "Well, it's a safe color."

After this complete demolition of my self-esteem, I decided that perhaps it was worth a small sum to achieve at least some level of youthful hipness.

So in a concerted effort to be non-mommish and to eschew all safety concerns, I got a little rebellious at the nail salon and picked this color...

"Greece Just Blue Me Away."

I'm feeling ready for Vegas now. Caesar's Palace, here I come!
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* Although it is unintentional, Ingrid has the ability to slice an ego to the core. Please refer to this blog entry to read about another slap she gave my self image a few months ago.