I’m Back!

My Sexagenarian Brain is still on Vacation!

Yes, as I write this it’s still January and I am looking forward to spending February in sunny Orlando. But I know when I get back in March, it will take me a few weeks to rev up my vacation brain to the steel-trap, high-octane, mega-creative performance you demand and I expect. So, as I did for last week’s blog, I am writing this before I go, with the understanding that I can update it when I return to Real Life. My brain may be suffused with sunshine, but I still want to be prepared!

Last week, we talked about a book I had read, One Way Ticket, set in Orlando. That got me curious- there must be lots of other books set in The City Beautiful. Idea! I could lose myself in a book that features Orlando- while I’m poolside in Orlando! So I clicked on over to Goodreads and here are a sample of books from the top of the list: “Books set in Orlando.”

1. Paper Towns by John Green  650,777 ratings on Goodreads! 

One of the first reviews of this book listed was by my fabulous friend and fellow-blogger Beth Ann Chiles. She reported, Another fabulous book by John Green that leads the reader through the lives of Margo Roth Spiegelman and Quentin Jacobsen as revenge is plotted and a mystery unfolds. No surprise that this won the Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Mystery! 

2.  Dream Man by Linda Howard  15,892 ratings on Goodreads!

Detective Dane Hollister of the Orlando police department – he of the “heat and muscles”- stars in this exciting read!

3.  Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom by Cory Doctorow 

Yes, Orlando and the Magic Kingdom! This book sounds amazing- Jules is a young man barely a century old. He’s lived long enough to see the cure for death and the end of scarcity, to learn ten languages and compose three symphonies…and to realize his boyhood dream of taking up residence in Disney World.

4. Carrying Albert Home: The Somewhat True Story of A Man, His Wife, and Her Alligator by Homer Hickam

Big Fish meets The Notebook in this emotionally evocative story about a man, a woman, and an alligator that is a moving tribute to love, from the author of the award-winning memoir Rocket Boys—the basis of the movie October Sky.

I hope you are intrigued by these books! And now on to the French Laundry.

Yes, I mean the iconic California wine country Michelin-starred restaurant that’s on the top of my bucket list. How did I get from books to my bucket list in this post? Well, last week as you may recall, I featured author Melissa Baldwin and my hope of meeting her at the Cafe Tu Tu Tango in Orlando. which she had described in her recent book. I had also read another book by her, FriendsForNever which to my delight, contained a marvelous scene where the heroine meets her fiance’s family for the first time at the French Laundry! (No pressure, right!)

Foodie Fix!

Here’s what I know about the real French Laundry. Chef Thomas Keller is the head chef of this palate palace, and he features French-inspired American food in a 9-course meal that takes 3-4 hours. Yes, this is my idea of bliss, the best of life, heaven in Yountville, California. But…it’s almost impossible to get reservations. I tried once when I knew we were going to be in the area (hard to pop in from Ohio) and I called and called and even called some more, only to end up on a wait list. And you have to call months ahead or use Open Table at 12am PST exactly two months before your date. Here’s the procedure-with photos!- of how to secure a spot!

Good Luck!

Do you have a bucket list of the events or places you dream about experiencing? Or have you checked some items off your list? Let me know!