Sunshower Sessions

On my lunch break today I went for a sunshower. This is the latest in artificial tanning - something that I am usually vehemently against, due to an unresearched but probably well-founded fear of sunbeds. Let's face it, if the sun can give you skin cancer, you're probably not wise to fling yourself into a close, powerfully lit environment that emulates the sun. I've been on a sunbed twice before this - both times when Shoes and I were working with Mini-Me and G at a pub in our first 6 months here. Our manager had this old sunbed in the garage that she never used, and Mini-Me (who is about as obssessed with tanning as it's possible to be) decided to install it in her lounge, so she could tan while listening to her favourite TV shows. Yes, I did mean to say listening - due to the set-up of the lounge and the lack of space, she couldn't move the couch that blocked the TV, and so had to imagine the antics of Monica, Chandler and the rest of the gang as she listened to the dialogue. This particular sunbed was WAY past it's sell-by date, and probably a serious fire hazard as well as being a health risk. Nevertheless, it is tempting, when you're about to go home on your annual holiday from what is the middle of English winter, to gloss over the glaring glow that blinds unsuspecting passers-by whenever you get your pins out. And so, Mini-Me put the has-been sunbed to excellent use, going very brown very quickly. Depending on how cynical you are, you could say this was either because the sunbed was working very well or very badly. I didn't notice much difference on myself, but then, she has always tanned three times faster than me and retained it three times longer.

The sunshower is like a suped up sunbed. Instead of lying down, you stand up in a cubicle surrounded by sets of very strong, very hot lights. Shoes' sister regularly goes in the tan can at her gym, and I think this is the same thing. It has two distinct advantages over the sunbed: one - it is much, much cooler, as you don't lie sweltering in a pool of your own sweat while the lights do their job; instead, you stand upright with plenty of space around your body, and cool moist air circulates so that you have a constant breeze to counter the heat. Two - due to the intensity, you only have to '"shower" for 6 minutes at a time. Today was my fourth treatment out of six, and I'm now a nice golden brown colour. I resorted to this desperate measure after the gang came back from Turkey and I was the lone milky bar button in a pack of milk chocolates. Jealousy makes you careless!

I have good news on the Italy front. Shoes now has his British driver's license, our flights to Venice are booked and we have made our reservation at the b&b in Lake Garda. We are staying at the Gabbione Malescine, recommended by my parents who went there 2 years ago. I was browsing a book shop after the sunshower today, and found a guide to Italy, which I had a quick scan through..... it looks absolutely stunning there. The weather in September should be mild, but the mountains are permanently snow capped and the alpine lake an icy azure blue. It really looks like a postcard setting. I'm starting to get antsy about going on holiday - with summer here, all everyone at work can talk about is the trip they have booked, or the holiday they have just returned from. Not having had a real holiday myself in 2 years is starting grate on me, and I'm feeling generally sick and tired of life. Not that I'm unhappy - I'm definitely not; but I feel the need to leave life by the wayside for a little bit and step into someone else's paradise. Only 2 more months to go though, as we're planning to buy our tickets to Portugal this month, and we'd leave second weekend of August. I'm still worried about my passport - it should arrive latest end of July, but you know how these things go, and there's only two weeks from when it should arrive to when we leave. I'm not going to dwell on that now though; I have to believe I have had enough miserable luck this year already and that this time I'm going to have the chance to share the experience.