Alive and Well

For those of you who were concerned by my lack of blogging (I'm going to assume you exist), don't worry, I'm still alive. And well. My test is over, and until I get my scores (May 4), I can be blissfully ignorant and pretend I'm done for real.

As I explained to a friend, walking out of the testing center after the last test felt like the scene in the movie Shawshank Redemption when Morgan Freeman is finally released from prison after decades in captivity. ("So you're going to kill yourself now?" my friend asked. No, and perhaps that wasn't such a good example.) What I meant to emphasize was the feeling of being free for the first time in a long time, and having no clue what to do with it. I'll learn, I'm sure.

Last week, I decided to schedule the rest of the week off work and go home, and it's probably the smartest anticipatory decision I've ever made. Until I return to LA on Sunday, I'm catching up on sleep, home-cooked food, and bringing the part of my brain that experiences joy and happiness out of its dormant state. Lots of biking, dancing, and perhaps swimming. No stress.

Even shoulder devil has been on my side the last few days. Every time I start to feel a little guilty for missing work and doing nothing, he quips back "Shut up - you deserve this." Okay, shoulder devil, if you insist.