Pansies

First thing this morning, upon commiserating with a coworker, the subject of 'what did you do over the weekend' came up. It was a lovely, lovely weekend - sunny and clear. I took full advantage of the 'buy one get one free' plant sale at OSH and left there with 36 Pansies and Violas (six per pack) and two African Daisies and all for only $17, tax included. SUCH A DEAL. Sure, they were a bit 'frail' looking - I had visions of getting there when the doors opened but instead, slept in and didn't actually get there until mid-morning. But once crowded into the patio pots that were sadly in need of replanting, they look great. Will finish up the planting this week, after work. Anyway, in this conversation I had to confess that sometimes, because of my close proximity to two teens, I miss work, she laughed and said 'I can imagine'. She was a middle school teacher for many years and while she has no kids (yet) she recalls those days of swirling hormones, angst filled days, etc. Still, it was a relatively peaceful weekend as weekends go - and it was thoroughly enjoyable. AND, I DID NOT WORK - which I put in caps because that is a rare and wonderful thing of late. J. got his bonus last week and we celebrated as we usually do by eating out all weekend. It's silly, but it's fun and the kids enjoy it. And J. and I even managed to have a dinner alone - sushi (!) for me and teriyaki for J. It was a nice evening sans children - and if nothing else, the suggestion of sushi (Japanese) usually has both of them running for the hills. It's not that they wouldn't like teriyaki - basically chicken, rice and salad - it's just the thought of me enjoying raw fish in their presence that sends them scurrying for any other option BUT dinner with their parents. I'm fine with that and grateful I've acquired a taste for the finer things in life.

The only 'negative' to the weekend was the darn time change - and as much as I want to moan about it, I have to say that the shortness of the duration of this thing called Daylight Savings Time - a mere three months, basically - it feels like the easiest transition ever. Sure, it was a bit strange to wake up at 5 this morning and realize it was really 4 - but that feeling happens every year. Yet, I didn't feel all that tired, unlike years past when I always felt like that Spring forward time change was going to kill me. And that's what made me realize: why did we even bother? What was the point of making the change in the fall later and now in the Spring earlier? I don't get it - what did we gain? It just seemed incredibly short to have been worthwhile at all.

Made it through a typical Monday - although this one involved a monthly staff meeting (thank goodness it's only once a month) that lasted SIX hours. Thank goodness we have food - and it was my turn (along with a coworker) to bring 'snacks'. It's pretty hard to think of snacks that encompass breakfast AND lunch - we started at 8 and finished at 2 with only two 10 minute breaks. Had creme brulee french toast with strawberries (delicious and made by my coworker). I brought turkey sausage links, fruit, yogurt, string cheese, juice, Starbucks coffee (LOTS) and an assortment of 100 calorie Kudos bars. Got us through with our sanity and brain cells intact. That was the longest of these monthly meetings in my history here but I was told they have gone literally until the end of the day. Wow. Something to look forward to?

We are T minus 11 days until our departure for Hawaii. I'm starting to get excited, though still feel completely overwhelmed at everything I have to do both at work and home to be 'prepared' for the trip. We already made reservations for our sailing/diving trip and a luau. We're planning a nice dinner on our actual anniversary - with kids, since that's also a 'tradition'. Thankfully, the cleaning crew comes the Tuesday before we leave so at least the house will be fairly 'tidy' - as long as we don't trash it in preparation. I am not off at all before we leave - had thought I'd have a day to get ready but the airline switched our flights - so I will have to rely on J. - leaving copious lists in my wake as I trudge off to work that Thursday (a class in Stockton, thankfully, because it will go by quickly and I should be done by 4 hopefully) and we will spend the next weekend and all the evenings in between starting to get ready. Much to pack, though I know from past experience that I over packed last trip and will spend most of our time there in a bathing suit with a 'cover up' over top. That and a couple pairs of shorts and one or two pairs of slacks for dinners out.

Finishing up "New Adventures of Old Christine" and heading upstairs for the night. Fofy (miniature parrot) needs attention as do the cats. Tomorrow is a Board meeting and that will be an incredibly long day. Will TRY to discipline myself to not go in until 8 - which is 'late' for me and feels strange. But I'm going to try - an extra hours sleep will do me a world of good.