One Week of Relaxation

The end of September marked my fifth wedding anniversary, which is just impossible for me to wrap my mind around! Each and every year, as our anniversary approaches, we discuss all the wonderful places that we'd like to go. And, each year, because we discuss such big plans, we decide at the last minute that there's just no time to plan, we probably can't get boarding for the dogs, it's just really not a good time at work, it would be SO expensive, and blah, blah, blah... You get the picture. So, every year since our honeymoon, we've decided to be content with a nice dinner out, but next year, boy oh boy, we're going on the BEST trip ever! And we did that for years 1,2,3,&4. I guess sometime after our last failed trip, we finally realized that we were trying to plan something too big.

This year, we decided to plan a beach trip to our old favorite, Fernandina Beach. I mean, it's only taken five years for me to realize that it's not where you go or how nice the accomodations are (within reason, of course!) but who you spend it with. And, in my case, the company was top notch. We were able to find a house that allowed dogs, so the entire family got to celebrate together...it just wouldn't seem right any other way!

It was so nice to relax with Joe and the dogs and reflect on the past five years. We've matured so much over the past several years. It's just hard to imagine that we were that newlywed couple five years ago without a clue! Since then, we've been through the divorce of parents, the death of a parent, and parents moving hours away. It's really been a trying few years, but the hardships have brought us closer together and taught us how to depend on one another. And, I guess when you get right down to it, that's what marriage is about...someone that you can depend on to be on your side no matter what happens.

I must say that the trip was worth the wait. We had an absolute blast. The dogs love the beach, and they haven't been in several years. We so enjoyed watching them play in the ocean. That alone was worth the trip. This trip was the first full week that I've had off work (except for maybe at Christmas one year) since my honeymoon...I don't think I realized that until just now, and I'm completely depressed! So, it took me about 2 or 3 days to just relax and stop worrying about what was going on at work, but come day 4, I was completely relaxed and stress-free. And, it's been equally as hard to get back into the swing of things. All that playing on the beach has made for some tired pups!

Charlie is very TIRED!

Champ chased the tennis ball until he dropped!

I feel so blessed to have a good job, a healthy marriage, dogs that I love, and the means to go on vacation every once in a while!

Just some things I wonder about

1. I have periods of time where I see all kinds of clothing in the road. And, I find this rather perplexing. A random shoe here, a sweatshirt there, a sports cap, etc… Where are these items coming from???? Why are there clothes in the road?? It really bothers me, in case you can’t tell. I, of course, have to develop theories of how the clothes got there. Perhaps these are clothes that were used to commit a crime and the perp is trying to distribute different articles of evidence all over town to avoid being connected to the crime. Maybe that sweatshirt I saw was one of the infamous “hoodies” that I read about in every robbery report. Then, there’s always the possibility that someone put their gym clothes on the roof of their car while unlocking the door, forgot about the clothes, and drove away, distributing articles of their clothing all over town. Maybe some scorned woman was angry with her significant other, sees that he left a pair of shoes in her car and decides on a whim to just chuck them out the window. Maybe someone was driving a convertible and that hat just blew right off their head. I find these thoughts most entertaining on a run. I might see an article of clothing at mile one, and literally, I can occupy my brain thinking about possibilities for the next ten minutes. Anything to get my mind off of the pain! This is just a small peak into the thoughts that are constantly going through my mind…it’s exhausting!

2. Is there a special class that bums take to help them select individuals who might actually give them money? If I’m in a group of people that is approached by a bum, I think 99 out of 100 times, I’ll be the one approached. I guess I must have a look of shear panic on my face that gives it away every time. The last man who approached me told me all about how he didn’t live downtown…he was just downtown visiting his friends. His friends happen to live downtown in some Section 8 housing that is smack-dab in the middle of the restaurants and bars that people frequent in the downtown area. All he wanted was $1.25 to (and I quote) “catch the bus, and get the f&*k out from down here.” His name was Paul, and Paul had obviously been drinking for some time. After further conversation, I was able to determine that he was downtown visiting his friends only because he’d been to see his probation officer earlier in the day, and she wasn’t there. So, he just had to sign his name indicating that he had been there. With a few hours to kill, what else would you do but drive 30 miles to hang out and drink with your friends? I totally understood where Paul was coming from…it really was his probation officer’s fault for not being there. He also gestured wildly when he was talking, and I kept thinking he was going to touch my boobs with one of his wild gestures (he was coming remarkably close!). So, I’m guessing the angle at which I was leaning during our conversation probably made for an interesting view from all of the bystanders.

3. Do gynecologists get together to discuss ways to make the yearly physical more humiliating? I’m not sure if you’re one of the lucky ones who gets an actual gown, but I am not. I get a “blanket” that is essentially made out of Kleenex material to go over me from the waist down, and a separate cloth that is roughly 8”x14” to cover my chest. Not only that, they give no instruction about what’s supposed to go where, so I never know if I’m using the cloths appropriately or if they’re secretly laughing at me after I leave! I feel like they should teach a class on the appropriate use of the cloths. And, if you’re well endowed in the breast department, I know it must be difficult because the chest cloth barely covers me, and I am the opposite of well endowed in that area! I feel like I might as well go fully nude with no covering and avoid the anxiety that comes with trying to cover myself with the inadequate materials provided.