I work for an education service cooperative and one of the benefits is that we take a spring break with the school districts. So, for the past week I have been on a ‘stay-cation.’
My usual ritual during a normal work week is to set my alarm early enough to allow at least an hour of reading and writing before leaving the house. Therefore, one of the major perks of time off from work is that I can sleep later, wake without alarm, and still read and write before I start the day’s projects. I have enjoyed seven wonderful days of this relaxing schedule.
My big project for the week was to clean files and throw away/shred old documents. This took up a good part of every day because I can’t get rid of anything without looking at it. This created side projects of organizing the stuff I need/want to keep.
The Saturday that began my Spring Break was the night of the big moon. I suppose I had missed the announcement of this happening and as I arrived home after dark, I noticed the full moon looked especially large and bright. My first thought was, “Full moon. The crazies are out tonight.” The word ‘lunatic’ comes from the same root as ‘lunar,’ as people once thought the full moon had something to do with strange behavior. Scientists will tell you that is absolutely not so. But, I managed a crisis call line for ten years and I can find several mental health professionals who will argue the point.
Early in the week, Elizabeth Taylor died. She was 79 and had many health problems. Once an interviewer mentioned her several marriages and she replied, “I get married because I don’t shack up.” RIP, Elizabeth.
On Friday of Spring Break, I pulled out the electric heater and afghan I had put away on Monday. I made a pot of soup. The 75 ° sunny had turned to 45° rain.
One day, I enjoyed hanging out with my youngest son, Phil, eating lunch at my favorite restaurant in Searcy and arranging with Hastings to stock my book (To Find a Home) and host a book-signing in May. (More about that later.)
I didn’t watch much TV during the week at home. Alas, that used to be my favorite time-waster. But the quality of programming has deteriorated so badly. Most programs I haven’t already seen are not of interest to me. TV programmers don’t seem to be interested in my demographic. I would discontinue cable all together but when my children visit there are usually sporting events they want to see. I did watch some March Madness and a couple of movies.
The Third Wish was billed as starring Betty White, however she had only a small supporting role (but she had the biggest name). The primary roles were taken by Jenna Mattison and Sean McGuire. If you like Julia Roberts, Hugh Grant, Pretty Woman, Notting Hill, — or for that matter Great Expectations — you probably wouldn’t care for this movie.
Keith, an independent film starring Elisabeth Harnois and Jesse McCartney was entertaining enough. If you liked A Walk to Remember you might like this movie, but you probably can’t find it at Red Box.
At the end of the day (or week) it was a very satisfying, restful and productive 7 days. I checked most of my to-dos off the list and — the most telling sign of a good vacation — I’m ready to go back to work on Monday.
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