I love my grandpa, but damn, Florida sucks. It's hot as hell and the bugs are HUGE and the supermarket is a 45 minute drive away. Did I mention the bugs?

Yuck.

So we headed off to my Aunt Day and Uncle Art's house today...also in Florida, but in a more populated area. They live by the Gulf Of Mexico. So it was really hot, and instead of big bugs, we saw a snake. We actually got to drive down to the beach and really SEE the Gulf of Mexico...which might have been great fun if we had been told where we were going before we left and worn swimsuits and sunscreen. The beach was beautiful, and the water was warm, but the temperature was 104 degrees and it was 2 pm.

Did you know that if you walk around on white sand the bottom of your chin can get sunburned? I didn't know that. Not until that trip to the beach.

We also raced go-carts. Like live action Mario Kart 64 or something similar. I hopped into the blue car and thought "Hey, this shouldn't be as hard as it was when I was ten, seeing as I can actually drive now."

Real driving skills have little impact on the go-cart. It goes by different rules. Painfully inaccurate ones. For example...the steering wheels don't turn. The gas pedal requires as much effort as a leg press. Fully depressing the gas pedal does not always mean the go-cart will be accelerating. My go-cart was lurching and the engine was going "pop-pop-pop". I was laped by every other cart...including those driven by my father and uncle.

Ask about my go-cart self esteem. Go ahead.

The most enjoyable part of visiting had to be the shower. Not that I wasn't happy to see my Aunt and Uncle, but let me tell you about the well water at Grandpa's. He has his own well, and the water is softened in some filter thing outside, so the water feels all slimy and icky. Then, it reeks of the sulfur from the ground. Y'know, that rotten egg smell. And you bathe in it. I seldom feel clean there.

But Aunt Day and Uncle Art don't have sulfur water. Their water is more normal. I was pleased to get a shower that didn't leave me stinking of eggs. Very pleased. I was singing and dancing with joy when I was done with the shower.

Then I collapsed in writhing pain with The Headache That Would Last All Night.

So I stared blankly at the ceiling of the room I was sleeping in and the way it was slanted reminded me of Jeremy's dorm room. Then I saw a book a had read in high school sitting on the shelves. Then I starting hearing House of Pain's 'Jump around, jump around' song, which I can only assume was called 'Jump Around' or something similar, in my head. Then I put my hands over my ears in the vain attempt to exile it.

So, in other words, it was a long night.