A Wet End to the Week....

It is a really rainy Friday today. When I woke up, I could hear the pelt of raindrops on the windows and the drip of the gutter on my back patio. The news reported that there were a number of accidents on the roadways and that I should leave extra time for my morning commute.

It was all I could do to make myself get up and ready for work.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Days like this are made for staying home, for staying in bed, for being allowed to appreciate the natural world around us and know that it's nature's way of saying, "I don't want you to go out today."

I tried to listen to nature. The dreamer in me wished that my boss would send a message saying that we didn't have to come into the office today and I could have a free day off. As I said, it was the dreamer in me. The realist knows that my boss and his boss would NEVER do that, they'd never fathom the possibility that they could do that. I thought about taking a day off but when it comes to Paid Time Off (PTO), as I've mentioned, my company is not generous. I'm down to five days and given that winter isn't even here yet with its steady threat of the flu and other viruses, I have to save my time. When you're only accruing one day a month and there's no differentiation between sick time and vacation time, you have to save it for when you really need it, not for a rainy day.

So, I dragged myself out of bed. I'm still not so sure it was a good idea. As I was making my toast, I managed to drop the lid of my butter dish onto the floor. Naturally, it was made of glass and, naturally, it shattered. I only had time to sweep it up and check for splinters, butter my toast and dash out the door.

It was raining and it was raining hard. To make things worse, they've finally finished construction on the interstate that I take to get to work. It was previously down to two lanes with those orange barrel thingys and concrete dividers shutting off the rest of the road. Two days ago, they reopened all the lanes. I'm still not used to my entry ramp shooting me out into a new lane that wasn't there before, especially in the mornings when it's dark. They haven't put any reflectors down yet and the only thing separating the lanes are sparse broken white lines. On a non-rainy day, it's not quite as bad because you can see out of the windows to figure out where the rest of the traffic is. Today, however, my window wipers were at their fastest speed and my car couldn't shake off the raindrops. The road was saturated, covered with deep pockets of water. Making out the lanes was a nightmare.

I think I might have been one of the only people who felt this way. Drivers started whizzing around me, clearly irritated that I wasn't going fast enough. They'd pass me and then pull out in front of me, forcing me to brake a little harder than I would have liked to stop myself rear-ending them. I wasn't about to drive faster, however. I may not like being bullied on the road but I also know when safety is more important.

By the time I was off the interstate, I breathed a sigh of relief. The rest of the drive wasn't so bad. When you're down to a two-lane highway, it's a little easier. The only other danger that lay ahead was the results of the season itself: The fallen leaves.

Because the rain is so heavy, the colourful leaves that have been clinging to the trees to show off their splendour have had to give up the fight. They've tumbled down, creating a thick carpet of leaves on the roads, pathways, cars and in people's yards. As a pedestrian, they can be hazardous to walk on; the rain makes them as slick as ice.

The town in which I work has cobbled streets. They're cool to look at, a nightmare to drive on. They're bumpy, uneven and when you enter the 'cobbled zone' there's a huge bump between the asphalt road and the cobbles. If I get stuck at the light right before the cobbled road starts, I literally have to gun my poor little Corolla so it can climb over the ridge. Today, they were almost invisible, thick with wet, soggy leaves. I slid at least a couple of times even though I was only driving 15 mph.

I finally made it to the office only ten minutes late. Everyone is feeling like I am; they wish they'd stayed in bed and are grumpy because it's Friday and if they'd stayed home, they would have had a three-day weekend.

Yet we're here. It means that our Friday is underway and we're edging closer to the weekend. I'm hoping it rains through the evening merely so I can appreciate the fact that I'm home and can stay there for a while. I just hope it lets up for the drive home.

Thanks, as always for reading. Have a great weekend.

Happy Friday.

A Dark and Stormy Day...

Today is definitely a day I would have stayed in bed if I could. In stark contrast to yesterday's bright and breezy morning, today started very...darkly. When my alarm went off, I thought I'd set it wrong as my room was still pitch black and there was no sign of daylight outside. Unfortunately, my alarm wasn't wrong. It really was time to get up.

Today is supposed to be stormy, according to weather reports. One peek outside my window and I could see that, for once, they were right. Though I could hear the rumble of thunder in the distance, we hadn't had any rain in my area.

When I went out to my car to leave for work, the garage was dark. Usually in the morning, the filtered light sinks into the dark space and I can at least see where I'm going. Today, that was not the case. When I pulled out into the road, the only world I can use to describe the world was...eerie. I know I used that word yesterday in relation to the fog. I'm using it in relation to the world before a storm today. I seemed to be the only car on the road, my light-sensitive headlights popped on, under the impression it was still night.

I drove out of my neighbourhood, not seeing a soul. For a brief moment, I felt like I was in one of those end-of-the-world films in which I am the only person left. I did not like that feeling too much.

Finally, I saw other headlights and I relaxed a little. I got onto the interstate and suddenly the skies opened. I've seen some heavy rain but this was some of the worst. It was coming down so heavily, I seriously felt like it was going to dent my car. The lightning flashed around me, followed by the harsh crack of the thunder. The hard part about rain like that is it's more dangerous to stop and try to pull over than to keep going. So I focused on the white line that marked my lane, stayed inside it, slowed my speed and kept going.

Other drivers weren't so cautious. They sped on by, slipping and sliding, cutting other drivers off. Those kind of drivers are dangerous because they act like they're above the weather. They think, "It's just rain." The thing is, it might be rain but it can still be dangerous. My years of driving in L.A. have taught me some things. We didn't get much rain there but when we did, it was heavy and when it came down, the roads were slick. It would be six months of build-up of oil and grease on the road, rising to the surface in the first heavy rain of the season. Yes, it was just rain but the roads are as slippery as if they were coated in ice.

So, I learned how to stop and start with caution, careful not to fishtail at stop lights. I learned to see where the highest part of the road was so that I knew which lane would have the least amount of water sitting stagnantly in it.

I was thankful for that experience today. I kept waiting for a break in the rain but still it kept coming. My body was tense, every part of me concentrating.

Finally, the rain did slow and I relaxed a little. I felt as though I'd won some kind of battle, I have to admit.

When I got to work, the rain had almost stopped and there was no trace of the violent storm I'd just seen. We're supposed to have storms like that all day. Part of me hopes we do; I do love a good thunderstorm. The thing is, I know that if we have them, out there, some poor souls are driving and while I'm inside, enjoying the protection of the four walls around me, they're struggling to see, to keep their cars on the road and fight the storm.

Neverless, from the security of the inside, the storm seems less ominous. The skies are still dark but at least it looks like daytime now. There was something fascinating about that apocalyptic darkness though, that I will say. Still, I could have done without the torrential rains that followed. I can hear the far off rumble of the thunder, even from my basement cubicle. Looks like it really is going to be a stormy day.

Happy Tuesday.

A Bright and Sunny Monday Morning...

I don't think there's any way around the fact that Monday mornings are...Monday mornings. No matter how much sleep you try to get the day before, no matter how good the weekend, a Monday is still a Monday, even if you pretend it's not.

Today is a beautiful Monday morning here; there's no humidity in sight, the morning air was a little chilly, the sun is shining and the grass is gleaming with dew. Even my grass at home is gleaming with dew, freshly mown, I'd like to add. I'm still not a fan of mowing, but I've discovered if I just do it, it's not so bad. Though I did get chased by a swarm of gnats the entire time I mowed. I felt like a horse. I hate gnats.

When I drive to work on mornings like this, the scenery is beautiful. The road I take cuts through some hills and its just the most glorious shades of green with all of the grass and trees and plants. Today, as with most of the cooler summer days, there's a spot that's foggy; it lasts for less than a mile and it seems to come out of nowhere. It's thick fog. I think it actually comes from the river that I pass over daily but it masks the countryside before and after. When I emerge from the fog, the world is clear and green again but for a few brief minutes, it's another world entirely; one that's chilly, slightly murky and a little eerie.

In the office, Mondays start slowly. People stumble down in search of coffee, stop to chat and then go about their business. I like that; I like the peace in the mornings. Lately, it hasn't been peaceful around here. There's been a lot of social activity, cleaning and other events that make our normally-quiet office a little hectic. Office politics are a little odd around here; it's not what I'm used to. It's not a bad thing but I've never worked for a company where the personal/professional line is quite so blurry at times where managers are friends with the employees outside of work as well as in the office. I think it's because I've worked for much more structured companies in the past. As I said, it's not necessarily bad but it adds a certain complicated layer to a company that's already a little lacking in communication.

Today, though, it's a nice day. I had a very nice weekend; I did quite a bit of unpacking. The house is starting to seem like my own. I set up my 'office' yesterday. This will be my writing room and it was important to make it feel right. I bought a couple of new bookcases and so while I write, I will be surrounded by books. That seems perfect to me.

As a result of my unpacking, I got to behold the powers of craigslist.org had a ton of empty boxes which I folded flat when I was finished. Having inherited them from someone at work who'd recently moved, I didn't want to recycle them because they still have some use in them. Thus, I placed an add on my local craigslist for "Free Boxes". Less than three hours later, the boxes were picked up by someone who needed them for their own move. Now I have a lot more empty space and they have their boxes; everyone's happy.

The one thing I've noticed about moving into my own home is that people tend to be pessimists. If I say, "I don't want to mow the grass," someone inevitably says, "wait until you have to shovel snow!" When I first became a homeowner, I had many people say variations of "Welcome to the headaches of homeownership!" As a first time homebuyer, I was hoping for a few more, "Hey, Captain Monkeypants! That's pretty cool. Congrats!" than the more practical "You need your own screwgun now" comments I got. I know people are trying to be helpful but sometimes a little encouragement goes a little further than inspiring a slight sense of dread.

That aside, I'm enjoying being a homeowner. I turned in my apartment keys on Friday and I'm still experiencing the joys of knowing that I'm now only responsible for my house, I'm not 'living' in dual places. Everytime I walk in my house, I feel this sense of rightness, of knowing that I made the right decision. When I do my laundry, I still get a small thrill that I can do it whenever I like, no quarters required. Even when I mow the grass, I know it's my grass and if I want to extend my patio out eventually to cut down on the grass, I can do that.

So, while it's a Monday morning, it seems like it's a pretty good one so far. It's a beautiful day, I can go home and relax without having to stop by my apartment to pick up more boxes. That's a lovely feeling.

Happy Monday.