Fall is here...sort of.

Fall officially starts this Saturday and it reached over 80 degrees today...my kind of September. My only solace for the end of the summer is pumpkin spice brewing in my Keurig. That and my countdown to my fall vacation which is a little earlier this year but longer because I took off 2 weeks...SCORE.

My summer staycation was great. I slept a lot (nothing new), sold some stuff on ebay, spent time with family and friends, ran, hung out with Xander, etc. Nothing too exciting. Oh, Ashley and I had a spa day on the 25th...we got massages and pedis. My week back to work wasn't bad, especially since I was able to leave early Friday so I bought a ticket and drove to Meadowbrook to see Stone Temple Pilots...awesome concert.

The following weekend, I drove to Ludlow Saturday and spent the evening/night with Great Aunt Cora and her friend Diane. We chatted, had dinner, played Aggravation, and drank whiskey and ginger ale. Yes, they out-drank me and yes, I was hungover the next day. Good thing there was coffee, pancakes, and bacon in the morning. I didn't know until that night that Cora doesn't have a relationship with her daughter anymore and that her daughter has done some pretty terrible things to her. I feel very sad about that but am glad that she has a great friend who happens to live down the hall. A few rounds of drinks into the evening, Cora had a little breakdown and admitted that she feels very alone and concurrently Diane was telling me that we (my family) need to be more involved and emotionally supportive of her. It was a little stressful and depressing hearing this especially since we've only known each other since last year but I do understand Diane has an assertive personality and is only trying to advocate for her good friend's well-being. I hope Cora is financially and physically able to visit California.

On the 7th and 8th, I went to a conference at the hitch geared towards perioperative people. Friday, I sat through a very long and overwhelming lecture on lasers, despite the speaker being very good, and Saturday was a longer day but more engaging and somewhat enjoyable. Gotta earn CEU's somehow.

I am nearing the end of one of my mini-vacations; it started a day earlier because I got called off my incenive shift Thursday. I helped out at the spay/neuter clinic Friday at UVHS for the first time and I actually really like it. I got to recover kittys after their procedure, I clipped nails, gave advantage and rabies shots, assessed for fleas and ear mites, and extubated female kittys. I love kittys. Saturday night, I went to a coworkers birthday party down the road and kinda stepped into the past for a little while. It was a house party with lots of booze, beer pong, fire in the backyard, card games, and even a bouncey house. Yup. I mixed vodka, rum, and tequila drinks and even threw a partial beer in there at the end...just like the good ole days of my early 20's. Luckily, someone was nice enough to give me a ride home so I didn't have to walk. I spent Sunday recovering.

I'm still running. Can jog over 3 miles without having to stop...a first for me. I like the pace and the distance and really have no desire to go beyond. Some say it can be addicting, I say not. Have yet to sign up for a 5k. I really need to buy some running clothes. Yes, shopping is definitely on my list of things to do on vacation. I've been meaning to check out the new outlets in Merrimack.

My bed is calling my name...