The Lily Cafe at home: Stormy Weather, Vacation Planning, Country Music, and Some Writing

Welcome into my home!

So, in my last At Home post, I mentioned the windy conditions that have been having a terrible effect on my son’s allergies. Well, good news is that the wind did die down a bit. Bad news is we’re in the middle of a storm. With winds.

Stormy Weather

As if California weather could get any more wild after dumping a series of storms on us December-January and then giving us warm temperatures followed by endless winds, there’s a blizzard warning in the mountains near where I live. Apparently it’s the first time one has been issued since the system was put in place some years ago. California isn’t usually associated with snow in the winters, but our mountains certainly get some, and the view of those white peaks has been especially lovely this year after a remarkably dry winter last year.

Anyways, we’ve got a storm system coming through right now. Thursday-Saturday, so we’re in the middle of it. Fun. This is a cold, wet one with snow coming to the lower elevations. According to a map I saw the other day, my general area could get a dusting. Mostly rain, though. Lots of it. It looks like there’s more rain next week, too. The last time I remember this much rain this late in the season was 2005, but I could be wrong since I spent a few years out of state since then. Well, back to watching the rain while enjoying the warmth inside and hoping my kids are keeping warm at school.

Vacation Planning

We’ve decided it’s time for a summer vacation. I had wanted to wait until my youngest was a year or two older, but my husband really wants us to go somewhere. I am apparently raising a Disney family, so, even though we regularly visit Disneyland (at least once a year), it’s time to head for Walt Disney World. I’ve never been, so I feel kind of at a loss. We’ve been told it’s better to fly in and out of Tampa, but, if anyone has any tips, please let me know!

Country Music

I grew up in the 90s and 00s, but didn’t listen to any of the music that was popular at the time. Of course, I was aware of the big boy bands thanks to friends and classmates, but never listened to them. Well, I’ve finally reached the age where the music that was playing during my childhood is back on the radio. So I get to listen to everything I didn’t listen to when I was a kid. It’s been kind of underwhelming and I don’t think I missed out on anything.

Growing up, I listened to the Oldies thanks to my dad, country music thanks to my mom, and folk music thanks to both of them, with some Disney tracks thrown in because we didn’t have cable but did have an aunt who kept giving us Disney movies we ended up watching on repeat. John Denver; Peter, Paul, and Mary; The Beach Boys; all the country music (I don’t care what my husband says; Dolly Parton’s I Will Always Love You will always be the best – and original – version); and some weird folk group who had a track with a really annoying saw formed the bedrock of my musical life. Well, until I discovered the dial on my radio and found the classical station.

When I was growing up, country music was so far from mainstream that the CMAs were never advertised, no one knew what songs and which musicians I was talking about, everyone who listened to country music outside of my family thought it sounded weird, and, when my brother was stationed in the South, everyone was shocked this Asian California guy knew all the songs to the 90s country songs. Sadly, I’ve moved on from country since it turned into pop country, but it’s deeply satisfying to hear the occasional country song on the radio these days. It’s mostly Shania Twain and LeAnn Rimes, but I’ll take what I can get.

Some Writing

Thanks to some play dates and spending time with my family, I haven’t gotten much writing done. There’s been a lot going on during the days, so I haven’t had much of the time I had been dedicating to writing, and the nights when both kids are in bed have seen me just too tired to do much more than read blog posts, when I happen to turn on my computer.

But I have finished my reverse outline for Coming Home and, boy, does it need a good rewrite! I’m slowly working my way through Raven, and I’m already crying at everything I have to do to it. For now, I’ve put my Baking Fantasy aside so I can get these outlines done. I’m getting closer to the next step, though, and that has been keeping me going.

Time to Get Back to Work

Well, time to get back to that writing. And getting some book reviews done. I’ve slowed down on my reading so I can do more writing, so getting reviews written and up has been much more manageable. But I’m more interested in watching this storm right now. Hopefully the weather will be normal by California standards the next time I sit down and write about what’s been going on at home. Hmm, on second thought, I need a break from my computer, so I guess you can find me in the kitchen today.

Until next time!