Monday I was off.

“Off” translates into do-as-much-as-you-can-because-your-job-is-coming-back-to-devour-you-so-RUN-NOW!

Thus, I now dub these as “everything” days. I try to do all that I need to do and all that I want to do in that day - tidying up, errands, visiting and having fun. When I am successful in this endeavor, then I did, indeed, have an “everything” day.

Monday was so everything.

After massive amounts of cleaning, which I did in the wee hours of the morning when I could be alone with my home and all its dirt, I then spent a few hours in our little pool and laying out poolside getting some sun. I do this because the sun helps fight depression, which I have mentioned before, and because as city editor, I never get to go outside anymore. It’s true. It’s one of the things they never tell you in the Secret City Editor Society. One, is, you will never get to go outside again. Two, is, you will never get to just eat your lunch. You now have to eat your lunch in your office while you edit a story, talk to a photographer and shake a stapler at a reporter. It’s not so bad. The stapler part takes a while to get the hang of, though.

After cleaning and pooling and washing clothes, Crystal and I hoisted ourselves into the Buick and launched forward into the unknown.

Or … we went to Wilmington to see the first born.

She drove and she curled her hair. Not like, during, like before she drove, she curled her hair, so she had big bouncy curls the whole way there. See?

I blame this on Denise Richards. We’ve been watching her reality show on TV and even if you hate Denise Richards, you must love her hair because it looks like it has been curled by angels who have tiny curling irons made of gold. I think my daughter secretly wants one of those angels. And several of those curling irons.

We got to Wilmington and had much fun. Amber has moved into her old dorm but on a new floor and has decorated her room all pretty and festive. But I don’t have pictures. Because, for whatever reason, my children are convinced that everytime I pull out my camera they are going to end up on my blog. Or in a column. Like I don’t have better things to write about. Like I don’t have a life. Like I couldn’t be at home, alone, scrubbing my kitchen floors or dusting my ceiling fans or singing to my cats or counting my socks and LOVING EVERY MINUTE OF IT.

So now they’re all stealth about pictures. Whatever, offspring, whatever.

But I do have books! I got books! Oh, books!!!! I love them so much!!!! Look at all the exclamation points, THAT’S HOW MUCH!!!!

I specifically love the Barnes and Noble and I specifically, ifically love the Barnes and Noble in Wilmington, which is where we went. I walked in, handed my daughters my Visa, told them to get lost and leave me be for about an hour, and then I proceeded to traipse around in literate bliss.

I bought this book by Madonna’s brother, not because I am a Madonna fan but because I am nosey. That’s it.

I also bought this book by Elizabeth Buchan because I love her writing and have read other books of hers.

And this book because it is related to my field of work and it was cheap.

OH CHEAP BOOKS!!!

After, we ate at Chili’s and it was fun because my kids are dim and strange fun and vibrant in public.

That’s my Destiny and she always looks good.

And this was a good idea at the time but I can’t really explain it to you now, but we had our reasons:

Anything can happen on everything day.