Dreamer's World February 08, 2018 - Looking Forward To Some Time Off

    After months and months of constant work, I am approaching a staycation that I desperately need. I have taken a day here and there for personal reasons over the last nine months, crammed with appointments and tasks that made them seem like just another day at work. I realized that I was exhausting myself over the xmas holiday period. I watched everyone else taking time off, and I knew that I needed some time for myself too.

    There is one lesson I learned from my time in the Navy, and that is how to manipulate the system for maximum time off while burning the least amount of leave time. I decided to take the week of Presidents Day off. After checking the calendar, I knew that I would end up with nine days off while only being charged for four days of leave and I knew that this was the perfect time for me to get away from work. I haven't made plans except for telling Hal that we are going to one of the local casinos on one of the days. Neither of us are real gamblers, but showing up with some extra cash and hitting the slots for the day isn't going to bankrupt either of us. I predict that we will spend between $20-25 at the casino and will hopefully walk away with some extra winnings at the end.

    The two closest casinos are the MGM at National Harbor, just south of DC in Maryland, and the Charles Town casino in West Virginia. I prefer to go to West Virginia because we have not traveled in that direction and it will be nice to go somewhere new. The weather may be a factor, but that is out of my control. Presidents Day is notorious around here for snowstorms after all.

    I made the arrangements to take time off two weeks ago, and I have waited for it to arrive. I know that I only have to get through the rest of this week and then next week before I can let things go and relax with Hal and The Stooges. The timing is perfect for me to get away, and the next opportunity like this won't happen until Memorial Day. There is no way that I could hold out that long. As staycation time gets closer, my anticipation grows each day.

    Today will be another day with the work routine. I feel like I am just going through the motions on a treadmill, but that is nothing new. At least I can look forward to a visit with the acupuncturist after work today. I hope to end the evening with a good night of sleep.

    Hal The Cat just broke up my morning routine. Since he was making all sorts of noise, I had to find a way to keep him quiet. I went to the kitchen for a drink and took a straw back and tossed it to Hal The Cat. The rest is history. Eventually, Hal The Cat tired himself out playing with the straw and decided to take a nap.