What? You don't have a 10-year-old Isuzu Rodeo that needs a cargo cover?

When we went to the State Department warehouse in Hagerstown, Md., last week to "visit" our stuff, one of the random, odds-and-ends things we brought back with us was a near-new roll-up cargo cover for an Isuzu Rodeo.
Yes, it went to the Rodeo we traded in when we got our Jeep Liberty -- in February 2007.
My assumption is that since we never used the cargo cover -- and it had a tendency to get in the way -- that it was home in the garage when we traded in the car. And because the garage was one of the areas I didn't have time to properly purge the junk from before the movers came when we packed out a few months later, the cargo cover was wrapped neatly in brown paper and shipped to Hagerstown.
Kevin thought I was crazy -- OK, so Kevin often thinks I'm crazy, and he usually has a point -- but I said we'd bring it back with us. So now I'm trying to find a home for it.
I thought Freecycle would work for sure. I mean, I see all kinds of random junk claimed on there all the time. But the one woman who came to get it after seeing my post has a 1995 Rodeo, and the connections aren't the same.
Enter Craigslist. After posting it in the "Free" category on there, I've heard from a couple of people who are interested in it. No one who's willing to commit to a time to come and get it, mind you, but at least there's interest.
It's a nice little cargo cover, I promise. And it's lived in at least four states (Texas, Colorado, Maryland and now Virginia). Most people can't even say that. Please give it a good home.

"I would explore other options before committing."

I came across this line the other day in a Real Post Report on Talesmag.com. It's not a place we'd go -- there isn't even a U.S. mission there as far as I know -- but I wasn't familiar with the city and decided to read the report. And there it was in answer to the question "Knowing what you know now, would you still go there?".
I think that subject line describes a lot of things about life. It's always easier to make decisions if we have all of the information beforehand, which is pretty much impossible.

It's not about the stuff, but ...

at some point we all need to buy things. Often in the Foreign Service, the things you need to buy are things you won't be able to find wherever you're going. We're in a different situation at the moment in that we'll be able to buy whatever we want where we're going, but we'd like to get some things less expensively than we'll be able to there. And because Milan is an unfurnished post, we're responsible for supplying more of our own things -- furniture and the like -- than usual.
Today on Livelines, a Foreign Service hopeful asked for people's "Best of" lists. The responses so far run the gamut, and there isn't much I can add to the discussion in that forum. But here are my thoughts on some of the areas he mentioned.
Computer: It makes sense to have at least one laptop. They're easier to carry around than desktops, and they don't take up much room. Although we've had a 17-inch widescreen laptop monitor, I will say the smaller versions tend to be much lighter. Whatever you get, make sure it has a webcam.
Camera: I'm not a hard-core photographer despite my journalism degree, although I dream of having a digital SLR. Until then, I'm perfectly happy with my midlevel Kodak (I think it's a Z1012 IS). We also have a Flip for recording videos, and our basic Sony point-and-shoot has served us well.
Best housing in D.C.: I've mentioned our multiple Oakwood Falls Church stays numerous times. It's not perfect, but having it paid for up front (instead of having to pay rent ourselves and then get reimbursed) is a huge plus. It's not as good a deal for single people, though -- they only get a studio apartment if they stay here.
Cellphone: I don't have a real opinion on this, although we use basic (aka cheap) AT&T Go Phones at the moment.
Calling service: We've been devoted Skype users the past three years. At some point we'll probably use the feature that allows you to get your own number (so people can call you from a phone and not just their computer). Vonage was great, but we never could get it to work in our house in Port of Spain. (It probably was just our house, though, as others used it without a problem.)
So, those are my thoughts. Nothing earth-shattering, obviously, but it might be fun to look back and remember.

When a man loves a woman, he mocks her blog posts

At least that's what happened to me. So I won't be repeating any Facebook status updates on Blogger again. Or maybe I will just to see how Kevin reacts ...

My life isn't that interesting, but ...

I was thinking recently that my good, spur-of-the-moment thoughts end up on Facebook these days (in the form of status updates), and there isn't much fun stuff on here. I don't think I'll make a habit of this, but here's a look back at some of my statuses from this month.
April 2: is home more than 9.5 hours after leaving her sister's house this morning (the trip should have taken about eight hours). Thanks to horrendous traffic, she has developed a closer-than-desired relationship with all 9 quadrillion potholes on I-95 northbound between Richmond and Washington.
April 4: wishes everyone a happy Easter.
April 5: is in the market for a somewhat formal dress, and she is facing the reality that almost all of the ones that meet her modesty standards are from the mother-of-the-bride section. That makes her feel old. (This will be a blog entry all its own some day soon.)
April 6: finds it humorous that one of the housekeepers employed by her apartment complex refers to Owen as "El Nino."
April 8: wonders whether Tiki Barber still will be welcome on Martha Stewart's show after all this.
April 9: thinks she's found an honest Jiffy Lube. Yes, it was a shock to her, too.
April 10: and Kevin Friloux have been married 11 years today. The amazing thing is he's put up with her that long.
April 11: is amused by this "research poll" on her Facebook page: What deodorant brand would most allow you to live life fearlessly?
April 12: has just been informed she has "arms like a wolverine." She assumes this isn't a good thing.
April 13: spent today at the National Aquarium in Baltimore. Her Trini friends will be happy to know there are lots of scarlet ibises there.
April 14: is sad to be missing the American Copy Editors Society conference in Philadelphia this week. She feels like she hasn't been to a conference in forever. (Well, at least since 2007 in Miami.)
April 16: apologizes to anyone who got a random e-mail (with no subject line) from newswarrior@yahoo.com. Yahoo says someone else was able to take over my e-mail account temporarily, so definitely don't click the link in that e-mail. And rest assured that "real" e-mails from me always have subject lines.
Yesterday: survived a trip to the passport desk at Main State today. More importantly, Main State survived Owen's first trip to the passport desk.
Tonight: thought it went without saying, but she was wrong. So here goes: Please stop shoving books under the refrigerator. Thank you.

The books being shoved under the refrigerator were procured during a visit to the State Department's warehouse in Hagerstown, Md., today. We went to designate what we want to send to Milan, but we also brought a few things home with us. I might have to "lose" the Max and Ruby book, though. Perhaps the refrigerator will agree to help me.

It seems our small children are easily distracted

Tuesday I took Laura and Owen to the National Aquarium in Baltimore. We met Bret, Deirdre and Nate -- who were in Philadelphia for the American Copy Editors Society conference -- and saw the dolphin show and visited the shark/ray/turtle tank, rainforest and Atlantic coral reef. It was a lovely visit despite the aquarium's ban on strollers, which meant I had to carry Owen around all day. (OK, so I initially took advantage of the free baby backpack they offered. I'm not sure my back will ever recover from that little adventure.)
But just in case I need to remember the backpack incident:

More on digital luggage scales

This is the one we have. It doesn't weigh much, so we carry it with us on trips. It does use batteries, but they don't drain quickly. And when you're not at home and find the batteries have died, you can borrow the ones from the hotel TV's remote control. Yep, I did that in Miami on a trip from Port of Spain early last year.
Ah, the memories.

How not to PCS

That stands for "permanent change of station" for anyone who needs an explanation.
Yesterday I was asking one of our friends -- who is leaving in a couple of weeks for Mozambique -- whether she needed any help. She asked whether I had any advice for her. I should mention that she and her husband have four kids -- the oldest is Laura's age -- so I haven't been in the exact same situation before. But this is what I told her:

Have you packed out yet? If not, pack your suitcases before the movers come. Make sure every single thing you want to take in your luggage fits and that all the suitcases are within the 50-pound weight limit. (We have a digital luggage scale you can borrow if you need to, but I'd suggest buying one if you don't have your own.) Do not under any circumstance need to repack your suitcases -- with them spread on the ground in front of everyone -- while in the curbside check-in line at the airport.
Yes, that has happened to me. Twice, in fact. You'd think I'd learn.

To be fair, the second time wasn't curbside. And I had a 6-week-old baby (and no husband with me). But I am hoping I've learned my lesson.

The perfect outfit for when you want to blend into the carpet

The Vintage Caper

I enjoy reading Peter Mayle's books. French Lessons is hilarious, and I've liked all of the others I've read, too.
His latest, The Vintage Caper, is ficion about a major wine theft. It's less about wine than it is intrigue, though. It's not like people are obsessing over wine except the collection of it. And somehow I could picture Marseilles as he described it.
I wouldn't say it has a surprise ending, but the last two pages do make it an even more interesting story.

11 years and counting

Yesterday was our 11th anniversary. We went to La Madeleine for lunch (with kids in tow) and P.F. Chang's for dinner (and left the kids with a babysitter). Everyone survived the day, although I'm sure the sitter had her doubts for a while.
Since we've been married, we've ...
lived in four states (Arizona, Texas, Colorado and Virginia);
one foreign country (Trinidad and Tobago);
10 houses or apartments all of those places;
and driven and flown who knows how many miles.
And there's much more to come!
On a previous anniversary, I posted a generic photo of the Mesa Temple, which is where we got married. (Finding an actual wedding photo is rather complicated.) This year you get to see one of the few photos that exist of us together. No, I don't look too happy. It probably was the hailstorm we'd just endured. This is from Rocky Mountain National Park in 2004, when we'd just moved to Denver and hadn't started work or law school yet. (Kevin has another photo from this day as his Facebook profile pic.)

Celebrating Easter all year long

Our church -- the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints -- has produced a Christ-themed video entitled He Lives. I'm more than a little biased, of course, but it's a wonderful message.

Owen contemplates the mysteries of the universe

Or maybe he's just wondering what in the heck that elf behind him is doing.
This was taken at Glencairn Garden in Rock Hill, S.C. The elves are the work of Vernon Grant, who created the original Snap, Crackle and Pop for Rice Krispies.
Laura was there, too, of course. She was accompanied by Flat TJ. You've heard of Flat Stanley, right? Thomas Jefferson Elementary has their own version for students to take on trips. The tiered fountain in Glencairn's Veterans Garden was about as exciting as it got for him.
The garden is at its best when the azaleas are blooming, and we were there a little early for that. But it still is lovely.