Good Friday (so far)

Fridays are generally good days for me. Things at work have typically mellowed a bit over the course of the week, and every other Friday there are doughnuts in the snack room downstairs. (Snatching up a chocolate twist on the way to your desk, before you've even checked your email, definitely gets things off on the right foot.) And when I'm done with work, I know I get to go home and relax without the anticipation of stress for a couple days. I know I get to cuddle with Josh as we're going to sleep in our awesome bed (below). I know I get to sleep in as much as I want. Never mind that my internal alarm clock typically wakes me up early on a Saturday morning; it's just the idea that I could sleep in if I wanted to that makes me feel good.



Today is shaping up to be an especially good Friday. It's a chocolate twist day, but the good started even before that when I went for a run this morning. I always struggle to drag my ass out of bed on cold, gray mornings, but it turns out those are the mornings I most enjoy running, because I don't overheat. Sure, I'm yawning as I lace up my sneakers, and I'm rubbing my eyes as my feet first hit the pavement on Eastridge, but by the time I've reached Valparaiso, I'm warmed up and my breathing is even. The cold weather feels good, great even, refreshing and energizing, propelling me forward.

I like having the time to collect my thoughts and prepare for the day, to let my feet beat out whatever song I've got in my head, to give "good morning"s and quick smiles to whoever I pass. Most of all, I like that when I'm back home, stretching on the stairs of my apartment building, I know I've done something good for myself already, and it's not even 8AM. True, in a few hours I will eat a doughnut and thereby negate all the effort I just expended, but boy will it be worth it!

Runs and doughnut fixations aside, another reason I love Fridays is that you have the anticipation of the weekend. Delayed gratification - you've gotta love it. Inextricably linked with my penchant for putting off till tomorrow what I could enjoy today is the pleasure I derive from looking forward to future fun. Today, that future fun is sure to be *super*fun: Josh and I are going to Muir Beach, where we'll be staying at the Pelican Inn for a couple nights. So, instead of the bed above, I'll have this bed (room six) to look forward to. Pretty posh, huh?

It's outings like this that make me feel like a kid playing dress up. I realize I'm 23. Theoretically, this is an adult age. But I still feel a bit like I snuck in and got my driver's license, my job, and my apartment when nobody was looking. Will that feeling ever go away? Maybe after a few more posh mini-breaks like this. Maybe when I'm 30. Or maybe, I'll always want to do cartwheels on the beach. That wouldn't be so bad.