Looking Forward

Busy Season is FINALLY over! Woot! Yey! Thank God! It was a bad one, too; even more disorganized and panicked than usual. It was also longer by three days due to Emancipation Day. What's that, you ask? Well, unless you happen to live in DC, you've probably NOT heard of it as it is a holiday only celebrated in DC. It commemorates the day Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, which was actually April 16th. But, since April 16th fell on a Saturday this year (can't have that!), it was bumped up to the 15th. This meant on the normal tax deadline date, all DC government offices, including the IRS, were closed. So, the tax deadline date was moved to the 18th, which meant Mr. B ended up working all weekend. Boo.

Anyway, it's over so no sense dwelling on spoiled milk or spilled milk or any milk.

Time to look forward to what we are looking forward to!

Tonight, dinner at our favorite Durham restaurant, Magnolia Grill. I'd made the RSVP a month ago because I knew we'd want to celebrate the end of BS (tongue in cheek) and the beginning of the beginning of our new lives. Well, almost the beginning; Mr. B's last day with his current firm is slated for May 6th.

Mr. B's off this week so we're spending time pulling together our various lists to arrive at the master list of "What we have to do to implement our plan." It's gonna be a long list! Usually I don't necessarily look forward to checking things off a Honey Do list, but, in this case, everything on the list will be important means to an end.

We're enjoying each other's company, of course, even while working. We have taken time each afternoon to sit outside on our patio with cocktails and cigars. Yesterday, we realized that the baby bluebirds had hatched and were chirping away in the two bluebird houses we have on our fence. What a happy sound!

Not one of our houses but ours look exactly like this!

We decided we would go to the firm's After Busy Season party April 28th. We'd been on the fence about it given Mr. B's general unhappiness with his boss, but, as with some marriages that are nearing divorce, this relationship's been on a somewhat upward trend of late, so, we figured why not. Free drinks and food, anyway, at McCormick and Schmick's.

Then May 6th will arrive, as already noted.

We're celebrating our anniversary in Charleston this year. As always, we'll stay at our favorite place the Vendue Inn

and have our anniversary dinner at Slightly North of Broad (S.N.O.B).

We're planning on trying at least one new restaurant out this go-around, maybe two. It's a great dilemma to have; deciding what restaurant to eat at each night.

Not too long after we return from Charleston, our dear friends Don and Kathleen from California will arrive. We're taking a road trip to Indianapolis

for the Indianapolis 500.

We've been planning this for months now and really can't wait for this fun adventure, which will include some new and different experiences for us as well.

May's gonna pass in a blur. Come June, it will be time to buckle down and make things happen to facilitate our relocation to Florida. This may mean a trip or two down there.

July will be more of the same. We are also thinking of driving to NY towards the end of July for Mr. B's brother's 50th birthday. This will depend on how things are progressing with/where we are in the Florida move.

In August there is the potential for me (and maybe both of us) to fly to San Diego for my 30th high school reunion but this is a long shot and I'm not really counting on it happening. It would be fun, of course, but we may be in the midst of a move.

Obviously there will be some tough things to get through during all of the fun. And, if not exactly tough, then certainly challenging. Yet, having all of the good stuff going on will cool any stings. I, for, one, am going to continue to focus the majority of my energy and thought on only those things that move us forward in our plan and/or are entertaining.

No crisis before its time.

Have a good time, all of the time.

Enjoy yourself, it is later than you think.

Mrs. B