SUMMER PLEASURES

Today my goal was to indulge in a mani-pedi with polish in the blackest red I could find. For the past two weeks, my toenails have been grey, a surprisingly appealing neutral that perfectly matched my favorite Havaianas. As dark red is my default nail color, grey was a huge departure. In the moments before the day turned sweltering and my brain slowed, I begged myself to think beyond these trifles, but I hadn't the will. Nail polish makes me happy, and that's not a crime.

This grey is darker, deeper, better in real life:

The red isn't as dark as I'd hoped, but still super pretty. The temperature rose about twenty degrees while I was in the salon:

Today was the hottest day of the year; temperatures finally cracked the triple digit mark.

On a semi-intellectual note, I finally tracked down a copy of D.H. Lawrence in Taos for next week's journey. I would like to find a vacation-worthy novel but I may just take my Nook e-reader and some of the non-fiction books I grabbed at the library. (I like to wander among the shelves and pluck whatever looks interesting -- sometimes I read the books, sometimes I just page through them). Stocking up on cheesy magazines is de rigueur, as are (of course!) snacks.

Today was a good. relaxing day.

What I'm most looking forward to is the opportunity to take pictures. I haven't been photographing as much as I'd like and a change of scenery will reinvigorate me. I can't wait to see what I'm about to see!

Seneca said "travel and change of place impart new vigor to the mind."

Here I come!