Refuelling
I love to write, and I often sit in front of the computer way too much of the day. But at some point a person needs to refuel the inspirational tanks, and this extended holiday is doing exactly that. As my husband and I have made our way south, we have literally stopped to smell the roses. We're not in a hurry to get anywhere. We only need to enjoy where we are and what we're doing at any moment. So during our trip I've been soaking up everything and taking hundreds of pictures (almost everyday) to remind me of this experience when my memory starts to fade.
I don't stop thinking and daydreaming though. I couldn't turn off my brain if I tried, and ideas keep sneaking in all 
over the place. For instance, as we left Disneyland after a long but exhilarating day, my husband and I were imagining that the park probably never really closed, because as the visitors left, the staff would probably change over, and new workers would no doubt come in and attend to the maintenance end of things before the park reopened in the morning. Then we got to wondering how Disneyland staff gets everyone out -- tens of thousands of people go through every single day. So, of course, the story part of my brain starts to wonder, "What if there was a straggler that didn't get out?"
When we visited the San Diego Zoo, we took a guided tour to get our bearings and rode on the upper level of an open-air double decker bus. It gave us a great view of the giraffes -- we could look them right in the eye. The guide provided all kinds of interesting information about giraffes, but when he said they were afraid of heights, my brain took off again. What a great picture book story that would make!
But aside from completing the copy edit for a couple of my spring books, I have no plans to write while I'm away. My 
plan is to refuel my idea gas tanks and just generally unwind and relax, which I'm doing. It's been so long since I've done any drawing and painting, that I'm really looking forward to just sitting down under the shade of a palm tree with my sketchbook to see if I can still create pictures. Toward that end, I have taken all kinds of inspirational photographs.
Today we shall arrive in Phoenix, where we'll hang our hats for two or three weeks before heading back to real life again -- which includes three books already lined up, but yet to be written. I look forward to that, but until then I shall continue to enjoy being a snowbird.