Reelin' In The Years

"Your everlasting summer, you can see it fadin' fast /
So you grab a piece of somethin' that you think is gonna last /
Well, you wouldn't even know a diamond if you held it in your hand /
The things you think are precious I can't understand"
-Reelin' In The Years
by Steely Dan 1972 (Donald Fagen and Walter Becker)

So, fellow moochers, another year has come and gone and what have we learned? Are we any better at getting a free meal, or a drink, or that elusive invite. They are diamonds all and I trust that you all have learned well from Team VFH to appreciate whatever drops into your laps. Count on it as good karma, or good manuevering, or good planning, but please remember this, don't let opportunity slip through your hands.

Seriously though, despite these cautionary words, life is precious. The years keep chugging along and our time in Eden is fleeting. Perhaps Vacations From Home isn't just silly, it's a good way of looking at life; experience as much of it as you can, as cheaply as you can. I'm sure I can count on my one hand how many trust fund babies read this blog and most of us don't have money to throw around.



Team VFH



In years past money was extremely tight for Team VFH. Things were slightly looser in 2011 and we traveled a bit further than around the corner. April had us in New Orleans visitng my daughter and her boyfriend. In July we traveled to England to attend her daughter's wedding as well as Scotland and Belgium. Work had me in Los Angeles for a week in August; the first time I had been there in 20 years. And, just last week we were in Denver for Christmas where we each visited family members!

We were blessed. We know when diamonds are in our laps and 2011 was a great ride. We can only hope that 2012 comes close. 



Happy trails!

countdown

Well... we now have just a year left. If one buys into the hype surrounding the end of the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar which the Mayans created, December 21, 2012 is the end-date of a 5,125 year cycle. It means there are no more days after the winter solstice next year.

Some people believe that this time next year we may be visited again by people from the planet Nibiru... Others believe asteroids will slam into Earth, or our planet will be swallowed by a black hole. Yep... it's the apocalypse in less than a year.

What this means is you'll have to send out your Christmas cards especially early...  You may still fritter away your waning time with Black Friday shopping ordeals at the mall, but if you're smart and wait for the last minute to do your shopping, you'll be pleasantly surprised that you successfully avoided the entire mess!

Let's get this party started

What this also means, is that time is dwindling for Team VFH. There are so many places to visit within this timeframe, that we'll have to make hard choices.... do we visit Detroit, do we linger in Amsterdam, we must decide between Des Moines and Albuquerque, because you can't do it all! We must plan wisely...

The winter solstice means this is the longest night of the year and the offical start of winter. After this the days will get progressively longer until the summer solstice in June, 2012. Throughout history this day has been marked by celebrations, for light and life returns to the world slowly as the days get longer. In ancient Rome Saturn was honored with a week long feast. In Scandanavia the 12 day Feast of Juul started with the winter solstice. The Jews and the Chinese have their own versions of marking this day, but none perhaps is more famous than the fete thrown by those wacky druids out there in Stonehedge. Thousands gather at the ancient ruins to greet the sunrise with songs and chanting. Perhaps that's where Team VFH should alight next year to greet the oblivion?

mile high

Well well well....I'm not going to debate whether this is good karma, good luck or faithful followers of Team VFH being kind to your noble traveling moochers, but we were handed a couple of tickets to fly to Denver for Christmas. I surely won't count on the divine providence of Tim Tebow and his Broncos for this, though perhaps given the phenomenal arc he has propelled his team along this season, I wouldn't doubt that his good fortune has trickled down to our grubby little tightly clenched fists.

Good luck or Teebowed?

Janet, the leader of Vacations From Home (I am just the stringer), has a sister who lives out there with her young family. Janet's father and step mother wanted the entire family together for this holiday, but typical of Team VFH's inability to part with hard earned cash we decided early on not to make this trip. We did not even mull it over; we are cheap after all. When this unexpected and greatly appreciated windfall crossed our transom though we had to graciously accept. I even, gasp, opted out of work for that week. I am humbled that Janet's family thinks enough of me to invite me so warmly into their homes and their lives. Their kindness is limitless and I am honored.

An added bonus to this trip; I have two siblings living in Colorado. My kid sister lives in Denver proper while my brother is in Vail. I haven't seen my sister in 8 years and before my brother dropped by earlier this year there was a 10 year stretch of being apart. So, although I am, in a sense, abandoning my son for the second straight holiday, this is a good for me and good for the "royal we" of Team VFH.

tupperware party

So many containers, not
enough leftovers

This is certainly an exaggeration, but my son had to hunt down a Thanksgiving Day meal on his own. For hours that day he walked the streets of Lambertville teary-eyed clutching an empty  tupperware container to his chest. After all, his father had abandoned him. Finally friends of my son took pity on this hungry waif and he was welcomed into their home for a proper holiday meal and as a parting gift was given a pumpkin pie.

Before you condemn me for extreme cruelty and accuse me of failing as a parent, I had nothing planned because I got work for that entire weekend and stayed in a hotel. That's a poor excuse I know and had I been off I was prepared to deep fry another bird. Work has to be a priority when you're cheap though and besides I thought my boy was traveling to his mother's for the holiday. A comedy of errors, but I had no doubt my son would have a successful mooching day. Afterall, he is an honorary member of Team VFH and has learned well. Hell, he's a natural and he has been mooching off of me for years....the bum.