I'm wrapping up a lovely much-needed 10-day respite from the working world, which started with a fishing outing with the Captain and some friends, a trip that departed as the sun started to light the day...










Many fish were caught. Unfortunately, most of them were these damn sea robins...










But everyone scored at least one keeper fluke, which were masterfully filleted by the Captain...










On day 2, I took Crazy Nephew Matthew to Great Adventure for his birthday present on what was unquestionably the hottest day of the year. Almost unbearably hot and humid. But the little daredevil didn't seem to mind, not even when we got stuck on the top of Rolling Thunder for five minutes...










Seriously, how cute is he...













From there, it was time for our annual family vacation in the town where it all started, where our time was spent riding bikes...










watching the sun rise...










and set...










building things in the sand...










finding things in the sand...













enjoying stomach-flipping amusement rides...






















and generally enjoying the company of the crazy trio...














Once our week there ended, I returned to the Captain's hood for an afternoon of fishing with the boys. I deftfully dropped my camera during a slight boat roll and managed to make a total bird's nest of my fishing line, but it wasn't enough to ruin another terrific afternoon on the water.










I always get sentimental on Labor Day, when summer ends, but this year might be particularly so. I can't remember a better summer. Fortunately, my favorite season is just around the corner. Autumn, you ask? No, football.

It's not like I didn't know this was coming.

In fact, I drafted several responses to prepare for this possibility, starting in late June. I wrote His Holiness a Dear John letter. I crafted a lengthy post where I compared His Holiness to a former boyfriend who spent several months of our relationship seeking others via a social networking site. I created a top 10 Reasons Brett Favre Can Go Straight to Hell list. But when he announced, a mere three weeks ago, that he was indeed retired for good, I decided to let it go.

And then, today's news.

Today, I took the first steps in making a full break with the athlete formerly known as His Holiness. While in the office, I took a piece of rope and made a small noose, which I then hung around the Favre Jets figurine that heretofore sat atop the mantel in my office (yes, I have a fireplace in my office. pretty damn sweet) and hung #4 from a pipe in the ceiling. I sent the Captain a text message that read: "Good news. I'm all yours. Brett Favre is dead to me."

Tonight, as I sat in a local establishment enjoying a Guinness or three, taking in the press conference officially announcing Favre's return (because seeing him practice with the Vikings wasn't confirmation enough), I apparently watched with angry daggers shooting from my eyes at the television. It was probably a good thing there was no volume on the tube. My reaction had I heard his remarks would not have made a good impression on my co-workers (and, as an aside, if you live in New Jersey and need a solid happy hour spot, might I recommend this joint, which had delicious 50-cent sliders until 7 p.m.).

I'm not so naive to think that this break-up will be easy or clean. It's like when you see an old boyfriend and he looks pretty good and you only remember the good times, and forget about the crappy times that led to your break-up. Hell, during tonight's press conference, Favre laughed at one point and I almost got sucked in my his handsome face. But this is indeed a split and although I'll no doubt be tempted, my days of wholeheartedly supporting the hero of Kiln, Miss., are over. The title of His Holiness is officially retired.

No matter what, I assure you I'm handling this much better than this dude.

So I guess the big news from WBTC World is that I have started to investigate real estate in the Jersey shore region. While the hour that separates the Captain and I is not an insurmountable distance (particularly when compared to some lengths I've traveled in the name of romance in the past), we have a shared interest in that 50 miles being considerably shorter.

As a result, I have spent a lot of time on realtor.com lately. And what I have come to realize is that people have some really terrible ideas when it comes to decorating their homes. So I think it's time for a new feature on WBTC - an ongoing gallery of Bad Rooms.

Let's jump right in, shall we?

Could anyone describe the furniture scheme here? Because to me, it looks like an antique desk accompanied by a stool from a shoe store, a safe with some sort of jewelry box on it, and two velour dining room chairs...










From the same house, I didn't know this sort of kitchen furniture was still actually used anywhere but the front window of antique stores...










Thinnest room ever?
"Honey, I can't find the remote."
"Just lean over and change the damn channel."










This is a sad, sad room (although I do actually like the paint color on the walls)...










Do we think the doorways in this house came this way, or did they decide to kick it up a notch?

I truly have no idea what's going on here other than there are a LOT of exposed wires in the ceiling of what I can only hope is the basement...










And this is just bad, unless you're a sales rep for Pepto Bismol:










I think you'll be hearing a lot more about this in the coming months. This appears to be a treasure trove of material.