Winding Down

As they say, all good things come to an end. Tomorrow is my last day in Orlando before I head back on the road to reality, back up north, watching as the last of the palm trees and Spanish moss appear less and less frequently and the oaks, evergreens, and lush grasses take over the woods along 95 North. It's almost time to say goodbye to sunny, hot mornings and invigorating runs with the sun on my back and the sunscreen running in my eyes, of coming back to my mom's breakfasts of eggs, toast, and coffee. It's almost time to be welcomed back to my solitude.

It seems like a mere wink from the time we exited off I-4 onto Orange Blossom Trail until now. A week has passed as quick as a midsummer storm. But, like I said, these fleeting pleasures such as vacations end. I was talking to a bartender tonight about the state of the Florida economy, and he said that Florida's been hit hard and that I would be lucky, being from out of state, to get a job here in the near future. It was disheartening advice from a bartender. Aren't they supposed to patronize your whims and enable your self-medication? But I think I appreciate his honesty. It's not me, it's Florida.

We used to come down here for my dad's birthday every July, the four of us: my parents, me, and my brother. But those were different days, back before everyone discovered their own places and spaces and found less and less time to gather together going to Disney World or Universal Studios or flea markets or outlet malls. I understand that too. You are born into a family to grow and leave to begin your own. We can't be children forever, right? At some point, we must fly from the nest and actualize our own individual destinies and destinations. But there's always going to be that part of us that wonders "when did all this growing up happen?"

Today I ran my scheduled 3 miles, walked a mile, and did some arm work. I ate as I have been eating this vacation---2 meals and a lot of fruit for a snack. And I had some drinks (as in very recently), which may have brought about the melancholy of this post.

When I get home, there will be (and should be) an overhaul in my eating. I've kept up with the running schedule. But exercise was never my problem. I got a fortune cookie today that said "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always gotten." Isn't that the truth!

Unit tomorrow,

Deedah