A New Law: Another law to remember to put in place when I become dictator: Toilet paper selected for public use must be able to hold a greater amount of force than is required to turn the holder.

Hair Cut: Well, I finally did it. I got my hair cut. It's about shoulder length. I went in with pictures, described what I wanted, and ended up paying $40 for something I didn't really ask for… Oh well. You know, before I went in (while Ed was trying to talk me into going through with it) I thought I'd be crushed if they cut it wrong, or whatever. I really thought I'd go into hiding -not want to go out in public …That I'd be super-self-conscious, and that would lead to nervousness, depression, and would end up ruining my vacation, etc. In the end, the haircut's not exactly what I wanted, but I like the length. It's cute -I'll have it done a little different next time, though. No breakdowns. No worries. I was suprised how little the whole thing effected me. I've recently convinced that I'm fragile I guess, and it's times like these (as trivial as this really is) that show me that it doesn't matter. I can get through a bad haircut. -Why is it that I'm totally self-confident about being able to handle emergency situations, etc, but not a change in my appearance?

Vacation: We had an amazing time. We left on Thursday, the 15th, and came back on Monday, the 19th. In between we had a lot of fun. It started with a cab ride at about 6:30am. We got to O'Hare, checked in with United, went through security with no trouble, and headed to our gate. We were about 2 hours early, so we walked around looking for a place to have breakfast. We ended up choosing Chili's (yes, there's a Chili's at O'Hare!). We ate a leisurely breakfast, then walked around some more. Ed got some Starbucks, we looked at the bronchiosaurus skeleton (replica), and stared at the woman police officer on her Segway (moving backwards and forwards without her hands on the handlebars… amazing.) Soon enough, it was time for last-minute restroom visits (I wish more places had those sanitary toilet covers like O'Hare has), and then we boarded the plane. Fran, out travel agent, requested seats 21? E and F, and that's where we were placed. It was toward the middle of the plane, not particularly good or bad (they're really all the same). The only suprise was that we got a movie on the way there. “Under the Tuscan Sun”. I wasn't really in the mood for a chic flic, so I only watched off and on while reading “Into the Woods”. Ed seemed to enjoy the movie though. It did make the flight seem shorter.

It was about 20 degrees when we left Chicago, and about 70 when we arrived in Miami. A welcomed change to say the least! We picked up our bags and followed the Carnival lady (no, not a carnie…) to a bus that took us on a short ride to the port. There we flew through registration, got our “Sign & Sail” cards, and boarded the ship. Here we got another nice suprise. Fran had booked us a “Guaranteed 4A” cabin -in other words, we did not reserve a specific room. She said we'd get upgraded that way. She was right! We ended up getting a room with a window! And not a little port-hole, no, a big 4' x 3' or so window. It was very nice. We fear we may have gotten spoiled by it!

To be continued…