A happy ending

It may be 2012 in Australia, but we still have almost ten hours of 2011 remaining here on the west coast of the US.

Unlike more recent years, I'm not in a hurry to see this one go... but I'm excited to see what next year will bring. What more 'firsts' are out there? We've had quite a few this year:

My first trip to San Francisco, where I took photos like crazy. I loved that city.

Last summer, we hung out down the coast, in the laid back town of Encinitas, venturing a little further south to visit San Diego Zoo - another place that's been on my list of places to see for a long time.

A third place we crossed off our list was Las Vegas, followed by a trip through the Mojave Desert.

Miss Pie had her first birthday, and is very much an adventure-seeking toddler. Her first birthday was January 9th... which means her second birthday is right around the corner. Slow down, PJ!

Perhaps the biggest milestone was The Faery starting her first year of elementary school, and I've seen her blossom even more than I thought was possible.


So... what better way to cap off the year than one final road trip? We decided to head south earlier this week, chase the sun, and see a bit more of San Diego. We stayed in the Old Town region, where the smell of freshly baked tortillas permeated the air, inducing flashbacks to a long ago trip to Mexico.

We spent our first afternoon there gorging on burritos, churros, and - for us grown ups - margaritas. The next day, we took advantage of our annual membership to the zoo, making it our second visit there; rewarding ourselves with sushi at the end of the day.

Our evenings were relaxing ones in our hotel room. Miss Pie snored away while we played Crazy Eights with the Faery and then, lights off for the littlies, we simply read by the glow of technology - me with my new iPhone and J with the iPad.

Yesterday was our day to head back to LA, but with a detour inland to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. Our zoo membership also covered entrance there, and we loved the relaxed vibe. If you're ever in that area, I can't recommend it enough - I would possibly even recommend it over the zoo.

And here we are. Today is New Year's Eve - I can't help feeling somewhat like a contented cat sprawled out in the sun. 2011? A vintage year.

PS - If you want some comedy, scroll down and you'll be rewarded by the last photo. Promise.

Oh yes, they were. Nothing like making sweet love on the top of a car, right? The twelve-year-old in me had a massive giggle...

Hell doesn't have public toilets

Last night, J and I attempted to stay up and see 2011 in. We had a bottle of Moët & Chandon to share, cheese and crackers on hand, kids tucked up in bed... and the TV. The plan? To watch the Times Square Ball drop at midnight.

I'm not even sure why we thought this would be a good idea. For a start, it wasn't even live. Well, it was when it was recorded, of course, but there's a 3-hour time difference between New York and L.A. so by the time it aired at midnight in L.A., it would be old news in New York. I knew, at 9pm, that the ball had already dropped. Kind of took a little of the fun out of waiting to see it.

Anyhow, we refilled our glasses of the bubbly, and pressed on. Unable to commit to one channel, we kept switching between the coverage on NBC and ABC, depending on commercials, and which performer happened to be on. If I see Willow Smith lip-syncing her song and giving precocious answers to interviewers one more time, I will scream.

But I digress. We drank our bubbly, chatted, made observations, and continued watching. Whereas once upon a time, the old me would have loved to experience being in a place like Times Square on New Year's Eve, I honestly couldn't think of anything worse now. Huge crowds, in freezing conditions? Without public toilets? That's my idea of hell.

By about 11.30, my eyes could barely stay opened. The champagne hadn't helped. I decided bed was the only sensible place to be...  proof that I'm no spring chicken any more. I can't recall a single NYE - at least since childhood - where I was in bed before midnight.

Thinking about the cold conditions, I have to admit to being envious of friends and family in Australia. Although Christmas in the northern hemisphere is magical and the cosiness of being indoors, or rugging up and watching your breath fog up in the crisp air when venturing outside is rather lovely, New Year's Eve celebrations are so much better when the air is balmy and warm. Whether outside, down by the water and watching the Sydney fireworks display (with public toilets around, of course!) or relaxing under the stars at a friend's party, for me, there's nothing like a summery New Year's Eve. Barefoot, naturally.

Can't have it both ways, though. Not unless one is filthy rich and jets around the world frequently.

As for the Times Square Ball drop? I did eventually see it after a search on YouTube and was a little underwhelmed. I realise YouTube wouldn't have done it justice, and I'm probably biased, but I suspect that Sydney put on a far better show for the revellers.

However, today, the first day of 2011, I did see something impressive - the Rose Parade in Pasadena. It was broadcast live so we once again put the TV on for a good old glimpse into some Americana that we're not necessarily living. If we'd been more organised, we could have seen it in person because we live so close to Pasadena. I don't think the almost one-year-old or four-year-old would have appreciated it, but for me? Marching bands? Floats with dogs boogie boarding on mini water streams? B-2 stealth jets flying overhead? That's out of the ordinary, for sure. I wonder if there were public toilets there...

Wonky Reflections

It's the time of year where everybody talks about the year they've had. A good year, an eventful year, an awful year. One to remember always, or a year we'd rather forget. The sort of year that's best forgotten? Well, J and I have had a few of those in recent years. Thankfully, 2010 wasn't one of those. I don't want to bore readers, so the only recaps I'll make is: giving birth to my second gorgeous little girl, and moving to L.A. only months later. Epic!

For some reason, rather than dwelling on the year we've had, I've been thinking back much further. A good decade or so. The other night, I found myself going through my photo albums from 1999-2003. This was the first period of time that J & I lived overseas - in the UK - but I hadn't looked at the photos in quite a while.

Leiden, the Netherlands - 2002

The most obvious thing that struck me was how much younger I looked, but... duh! Ten years will do that. The difference between being twenty-something, and thirty-something is noticeable. Kids will age a person, too.

What else was different? Well, I used to bother wearing a bit of make-up. I used to make an effort. These days, concealer under my eyes - and some mascara with a slick of lipgloss - are about as complex as it gets.

From those photos, I can see that my hair also used to get a bit of attention. Not a lot (I've always been a fairly low-maintenance girl) but the photos indicate a variety of haircuts in that period of time, and some thought appears to have gone into the styling of it before leaving the house. These days, it's all about pony tails... and that's it. My hair is a pretty sad affair.

The differences between now and then aren't just physical.

I used to spend entire afternoons and evenings at pubs.

I used to go clubbing.

I used to go to underground dance parties.

I used to be able to just walk out the door without a thought as to what time I'd be returning.

I used to be able to disappear and lose myself, for a week or two at a time, in various European destinations.

I used to choose to function on only three hours sleep. For me, that's probably the craziest difference, right there. The fact that there were times when I crawled into bed at 4 or 5am, even on days where I might have to get up and go to work. And on the flipside, I used to rarely emerge from bed before 10am on the weekends.

Ah, youth... you were such fun! And so was I.

It's been a nostalgic Christmas for me as I remember those years. As 2011 is just around the corner and people talk of New Year's resolutions, I just listen. I don't do resolutions. I don't see the point in waiting until January to change something I'm not happy with.

I know my NYE won't involve any pubs, clubs, underground dance parties, wine, or cigarettes (amongst other things), but it will probably involve a decent amount of sleep. Broken - yes, I'm sure - but it won't be a late night for me, so I don't care.

Anyhow, expect the odd flash-back travel story here from time to time... and have a great New Year!