Moments God Gives
I overslept today...HAHAHA It was weird. My alarm went off and I acknowledged it. I have to in order to turn it off. But I fell right back to sleep. And then my white noise app must have turned off on its own. But that didn't wake me up either...hehehe When I finally woke up, it was almost time to start work...LOL I suppose my body really needed that extra time! I almost never sleep that deeply...HA!
After that, I felt a little goofy; which inspired my morning post. It also inspired a few silly videos. I sent one of them to my deer friend. The funny thing about today is that in the past, oversleeping would have caused me to panic and feel rushed to get going. I would typically allow that to ruin my day...hehehe That wasn't at all the case today. I don't know what my favorite moment will be today. But waking up feeling peace despite having overslept is definitely a top tier moment ❤️
Last night, my sister asked me if I had decided on all the places I was going to visit in California next week...hehehe I told her what I'll be doing is still evolving...LOL My friend Mack asked me about what I was going to be doing too. I guess it has been a very long time since I've taken a real trip. Have I forgotten the protocol?!? You go somewhere and you plan everything ahead of time, right!?! Nope, not me...hehehe I think most of what I'll be doing there will be spontaneous. The fact that I'm going anywhere is exciting enough...hehehe
As of now, the only plan coming together is a visit to The Last Bookstore in LA on Saturday. I may also visit Little Tokyo that day while I'm in the area. I don't plan on driving into LA. So I'll take transportation in. I'd like to get to Union Station as part of that adventure. Taking the buses and trains will be something new for me. I'll be doing these things with Chérie. At least the train, the bookstore, and possibly Little Tokyo. So it will all be amazing. Sharing these experiences will be cherished memories for the rest of my life ❤️
Originally, we were going to do the arboretum. Then we added another day to also go to Color Me Mine and do the farmer's market. Then it became The Last Bookstore and possibly Little Tokyo. What I love about all of these ideas is I'll have plenty of time do it all. All are great ideas and I can choose to do some of them on my own or none at all. I love the fact that I can just let these moments happen on their own. That's going to make this vacation feel relaxing. No pressure at all...hehehe
I didn't really want to travel much in the summer. The weather is predictably unpredictable...hehehe But here's the thing, I wanted to go to California for my birthday in March this year. I lost all hope in that when my company announced our work was being outsourced. I canceled all pending plans for travel as a result. As the time went on, I realized I need to just keep living me life regardless of what my company was doing...LOL Since California was still on my mind, I decided I didn't care that summer isn't the best time to be there. I'm ready to make memories! Time-wise, the July 4th holiday was the perfect time for the trip. That's why I'm doing it. What I will be doing while there isn't important. Just going is what matters to me.
I can imagine some people may think I'm a little crazy or stupid for going just for going's sake. I just don't see it that way. For one, I get to see my friend. That in and of itself makes it all worth doing...hehehe And there's the fact that this is my first real trip in 3 years. Thanks to Facebook memories, I now remember it has been exactly 3 years. This day 3 years ago was my first day of my last vacation...LOL And I mean traveling vacation. I'm not counting taking time off to do staycations or my travels back to Indiana to visit friends and family.
The way I look at this is that a few days of moments will give me a lifetime of memories. I get to revisit everything I'll experience over and over again. And that's exactly how I feel about my time with Chérie. Whether it is 1 hour or 5...I'll have memories I can relive for the rest of my life. What we get to do and how long we get to have aren't as important as the fact we will be doing it together. That's in addition to everything else I'll be doing on my own. Whether I go to the arboretum, ocean, church, Disney, or just stay in the hotel...I'll have memories of an adventure in California.
I see absolutely no reason to place any pressure of my trip to get in as much as possible. All of this reminds me of my first honeymoon. We went to Gatlinburg, Tennessee. We had everything planned out to the hour except the last 2 days. The last 2 days were in the Smoky Mountain National Park. Prior to those last 2 days, we did all of the touristy things everyone does in Galtinburg. We spent about $700 doing all of those things. Today, that would probably come to around double that...or more. But do you know what I remember most fondly about that trip!? The time in Smoky Mountain National Park.
If I recall correctly, it didn't cost anything to go into the park. We hiked trails both days. One of the trails led us to Rainbow Falls. It was amazing! I did a stupid thing and actually climbed up behind the water fall...hehehe I could have gotten myself killed and left my new wife a widow...LOL But I remember more about that hike and silly adventure than I do about any of that other stuff we paid for. And it really wasn't planned. When we arrived at the park, we picked a trail and just went!
The point I'm trying to make is that I don't want to do a bunch of touristy things when I travel. I just want to go with the flow. With the exception of my time with Chérie and my going to church on Sunday, I really don't want to plan anything. I'd like to just get up and accept the moments God gives me that day.
I hoping to get over to the coast and see the Pacific Ocean. Although I have been to the area of California I'm traveling to before, I didn't make it out to the coast. I was there on business and had a tight schedule. This time, it's all on my own time...hehehe Plus it will be for longer. I think my last trip there was 3 or 4 days, including travel. So only a few days of actual time there. This time, I'll be gone a total of 6 days. So I'll have about 4 and half days of me time...LOL
The other day, I mentioned I was tired. I don't feel so tired now. I think my physical, mental, and spiritual batteries are being recharged...hehehe I actually feel really great today. I'm not back to peak. But I'm getting there. Becoming worn out in those areas seems okay to me. We just need rest. That seems natural to me. I'm glad I've been able to get the rest I've needed. I feel really good about how I feel right now...hehehe
I've been working on a project. I'm not ready to write about it just yet. But I'm encouraged by the progress I've been making. There have been a few nights when I didn't make much progress. But that's okay. Progress is progress...LOL Once I've made enough progress to begin feeling confident with it, I'll start writing about.
I have another project I'd like to launch too. Again, not ready to talk about it. But I'm really excited about it. I just haven't made the time to get it started yet...LOL I may actually start it while I'm in California. I do plan to take some time while I'm there to work on these projects. Being away from home and taking time off from work really gets my creative juices flowing...hehehe
Speaking of projects, I think I'd like to make some progress on the one I've already started. So that's it for today's journal...hehehe