Thank You

Today is Veteran's Day. It is a bank holiday, a national holiday to honor all of our country's veterans from all wars and conflicts. This is the anniversary of the day that Armistice began in 1918 to end World War 1. There is an interesting history of the holiday here.

I appreciate but realize that I don't fully understand the sacrifices our veterans have made and the horrors they've seen. I count myself as immeasurably lucky not to have experienced war first hand. Seeing it on TV, hearing the news of things far, far away or visiting battlefields is hard enough. My heart goes out to families who are currently enduring the tenuous waiting and stress of having a loved one involved in the war.

Today, I am thinking about my father, my uncle Bob, my grandfather, Mike's grandfather, friends who've served, both in times of conflict and in times of peace. Thank you all.

Mike and I both have the day off, but Simon has school, which means . . .
DAYTIME DATE! I think we might even picnic in the park if it's warm enough. We'll be doing some work to get Mike's things ready for the Boy Scout Campout this weekend, too. Then I'll be having dinner with my sister! Yay!

An Unplanned Day

Now that I'm back at work, I work a lot. My typical daily schedule:
~5:30-6 am: Wake up
6-6:40: cajole son into eating and dressing and getting to the bus on time (6:40)
6:35- 1/2 hour before work (either 8:30 or 10:30 or somewhere in between): personal email, Facebook, knitting, breakfast, banking, odd but quick errands
9-6 or 11-8 or some variation (yesterday was 9-8): work
6:30 or 8:30 til around 10: dinner w/DH and DS, watch TV together, more computer playing

It seems so simple, distilled like this, but as you all know, life is never that simple. One thing you can see, though, is that if you're still recovering from, say, a brain leak, and you need a lot of sleep, there isn't much time to just hang out and do nothing. This week, because of all the great things my staff want to do in our community, I am working both Friday and Saturday (rarely happens) and am taking today (Wednesday) off to compensate myself.

So, what shall I do on my day off? I've already gotten my Obligatory Important Task to Better the Family done today (took both cats to the Vet for their annual check up, hissing and shots). Frankly, I think I scheduled the Vet visit just because it would be completely unheard of to have a day off w/o a doctor visit somewhere in it.

I will probably take a bit of a nap at some point today, just because I can . . . but this unexpected, unplanned day off is such a treat! I sit here in my kitchen wondering how I should spend the time so that I feel good at the end of the day, good and accomplished.

Suggestions? What do you do on unexpected free days?