intermission: the weekend

This has been, by far, one of the best weekends I've had in quite some time (having the weekend off work certainly helped this come about).

Friday. I worked 6:30-3:00, ran some errands, and at 6:00 Carly came over, and my girlfriend joined us for a bit, and we hung out and laughed and spun stories. My girlfriend ran off to work so Carly and I made an Italian dinner and then went to Target and to my girlfriend's work to see her on her break. It was a great night because (1) I got to see my girlfriend (of course) and (2) I got to hang out with Carly for a while. A really good friend whom I don't get to see too often because we're both too busy. Our pal Jessica would've joined us but she had prior plans. Nevertheless, a great evening.

Saturday. My girlfriend came over for a little bit, and we had some lunch and exchanged Valentine's Day gifts. She made me some delicious homemade muffins, and I got her a clock which she fell in love with after seeing it at the store. I also made her some "romantic coupons"--little coupons she gives me when she wants to do something romantic. Like a picnic, or seeing a movie, or a candlelit dinner, stuff like that (with a few oddities and inside jokes thrown in, of course). After we parted ways Dylan and I went down to Cincinnati to celebrate C. Isaac's birthday. I was exhausted going down there and once we went upstairs to hang out with "the cool kids" I passed out in Blake's bed while watching episodes of "Parks & Recreation." I was so out of it I watched one episode six times. Quite strange.

Sunday. Today's been spent writing. A burst of inspiration coupled with motivation and energy, fueled by seven shots of espresso, half a pack of cigarettes, and a couple shots of bourbon, and I hammered out 50 pages in the "Dwellers of the Night: 2" revision. It's at 220 pages now with only three more chapters to go. I'm halfway done with the first step of the revision process, and that's quite exciting. Now the story becomes more story-driven rather than character-driven, and that'll be a pleasant change. Now I'm drinking some chamomile tea and listening to some Sufjan Stevens and I'm going to call my girlfriend and boast about my accomplishments and go to bed. 

Not really looking forward to the next couple days. I work an evening shift tomorrow, followed by a morning shift Tuesday, an hour break before a special store meeting half an hour away that will take a few hours, then back home to do another morning shift. At least once Thursday's done it's smooth sailing the rest of the week, and I have the weekend off work, too. At least I'm caught up with my writing and can relax. I'm still jittery from all the espresso but this calming tea--not to mention Sufjan--helps. Now to see if I can sleep tonight. 30 Day Challenge resumes tomorrow with "A picture that makes you laugh." I already know what I'm going to choose. A classic.