Home again, home again...

We're back.  After a much needed vacation, we're back.  I could use this post to write a screed about AirTran and their shoddy customer service, but I won't.  Instead, allow me to wish all of you a healthy and happy 2010 and to recap what I learned over the holiday.

First I learned that I love show shoeing.  The solitude suits me.  I also found out that no matter what happens or where I live, the mountains call to me.  There is something appealing to living in the granite embrace of the Rockies.  I would like for my child to experience that one day.

I would like to climb a fourteener.  (A peak above 14,000 feet.)  I think I may have passed my window on that one, but I'm sure my brother would be game for taking me and teaching me the ropes, so to speak. 

I would like my son to do it, or at least aspire to it. 

I learned that I still love to drive long mountain passes to loud music.  My wife doesn't mind it and apparently, from how much he kicked, my child likes it, too.

I learned that I really miss my family.  Both my own and my wife's.  Family is important.  I always say the most interesting stories are about the families we create, but the ones we're born into are pretty amazing.

I learned that an xbox 360 should be played in moderation...   just like wine, good beer and my mom's cooking...  An overdose of any of them will make me tired, drunk and very, very heavy.  (I reeeeeeally like my mother's cooking.  Where do you think I learned.)

I learned that making fresh pasta with my father is a gas.  Since it was our first time, you can imagine we were a little clumsy, but it worked out. 

I learned that even at six months pregnant, my wife still looks pretty hot in her show shoeing outfit - borrowed boots and parka and all. 

I learned that cats communicate better and with more complexity than we know.  Ours was upset, then disturbed, then demanded an explanation, then purred in a way I have never heard before.  All of this after we came home from two weeks away.  Thank you Vincent for taking great care of her.  I learned that you are a true friend.

I learned that the BCS is truly a disaster.  I think I already knew that.

I learned that there is nothing as spectacular as the first view of NYC from 25,000 feet.

I learned that there is no shortage of books on parenting...  I think I now own them all.  They do make wonderful Christmas gifts. 

I learned that my family really keeps secrets well.  Especially when it involves a surprise baby shower.

I learned that babies need a lot of stuff.  Stuff I'm still working on assembling.

I learned that in the end, my life is not about what I do, what I own... It's perfect with my wife next to me, head on my shoulder, our child growing inside her belly, kicking and stretching.

For 2010, we've got big things coming.   First up, PCP's Welcome Mat, then a new play to finish, scripts to write, perhaps my final performance on stage before taking a brief hiatus to enjoy the arrival of our first child in April.  

Then... who knows, but it'll be perfect.