I need a vacation from vacation.

I'm pretty sure that whenever Hemingway had writer's block, he went to Orlando.

Sea World. Disney. Universal. Tacky. Tourists. Galore.

We just returned from Sea World and the longest car ride evah. Something about long car rides forces the vehicle to shrink as mileage increases. You leave the house in an SUV and arrive at your destination in a Ford Echo. And, my-oh-my, what snacks and fruit cups can do when you are trying to entertain a child in the back seat.

Not to mention movies, movies and more movies.

How did we ever go on vacation in the 70's? I don't remember watching Spongebob 20 times or drinking 100 Capri-Suns. All I can remember is asking my parents "How many more towns?" and sleeping, completely supine and without any car restraint whatsoever, in the back seat of a Chevrolet Caprice with light blue, vinyl seats, while listening to "The Devil Went Down To Georgia" on the radio.

I can remember that my mom always said how she hated that song (with the devil and all) but listened to it anyway. And, I just loved, loved, loved it because it was all about Georgia and even then I knew Charlie Daniels could rock.

"The Chicken in the Bread Pan Peckin' Out Dough,
Granny Does Your Dog Bite, No Child, No! "

Profound.

So, anyhoo. We spent a few days at Sea World and made a day trip to Silver Springs (a post of its own).

Can I just say that my daughter has fallen in love with the stingray? If we could have bought a discounted ticket, we could have just spent the entire two days at the Stingray Lagoon because you can not only view the stingrays, you can pet them.

Yes, slime and all. And I should know. I touched a few of them myself. I have to say it was kind of cool to actually touch one. (There was also a sink nearby for some serious handwashing.)

We did the usual Shamu and Dolphin shows and the cute Pets Ahoy show with rescued dogs, cats, ducks, a pig, a rat, and a skunk. It was great.

Near the end of our trip, my allergies flared up and now I have officially lost my voice. My daughter started having the sniffles too, and today she has a fever. Thankfully, we are home.

The fish survived our absence after the purchase of a highly technical Betta fish tank filtration system and feeding device. (It would have been a lot cheaper to replace a dead fish, but a Mama does what a Mama has to do.)

The cat didn't cause any injury to the kennel workers. She did hiss the first few days, but they say she gave up the fight and started being nice.

And hubs? He is recovering from all of the driving.

It was fun to get away, but I'm glad to be back. :>)