Early Risin'

It's 2:25 in the morning and I'm pretty much ready to go. The case is this: we are headed to the beach and I get to drive first, which means I get to start driving at 3am. I've only had less than four hours of sleep, but I feel pretty good. Everyone else is still asleep, although I suspect Mom will be getting up shortly. Because now is during that precarious time of night when the water softener is running, I can't do more than quickly wash my face for fear of staining the toilets just in time for us to leave. I'm sure this will happen anyway when everyone else wakes up.

I hope this trip will be a good one. It is Isaac and Nobu's first trip to Ocean Lakes with us and also the first time we've gotten our own place instead of sharing with Matthew and Stephanie. Hopefully this will minimize Dad's moodiness, or at least minimize our contact with it. Overall I am hopeful.

I will miss my Alex, as I always will, but I'll call him at least every day. I miss our long phone conversations, but I don't think we'll get to have any this week. But we'll see.

It is now time for me to get dressed and make some breakfast for the journey!

4th

Today, well, technically yesterday now, is Independence day. I had a very American lunch with Mom and then went to work from 3-11:30. It isn't until you're kept from doing something you do every year but never really cared about that you realize how much you need that thing. Today, for example, we would usually have the American style lunch and dinner and set off a few small fireworks in the backyard. I was stuck in Walmart this year for all of that. We could hear the fireworks going off while we were working inside and it was depressing. It felt like the year Mike went to a friend's New Year's party instead of giving me my first New Year's kiss. I know that it is silly to be down about missing fireworks with my family one year, but I can't help the feeling. Hopefully next year I'll get to be here for that.

On the subject of work, damn was it slow today! So slow, in fact, that I spent almost the entire second half of my shift learning self check out and in soft lines fixing clothes. 11:30 could not come soon enough.