Heading home....

I am writing this blog from the 14th floor balcony of Surfside Resort in Destin, Florida. In less than eight hours, I will be waking up to begin the drive back home. I had forgotten, since last year, just how much I really love this part of the country. There is just something about the feeling of being here. The feeling that life is so much simpler and the pace of life is at one's own leisure. I am sure that there are people here who feel the same about their favorite vacation spots, but I can't image a place more peaceful and more beautiful than this. Hearing the waves lap against the shore, and the roar of the Gulf as it pushes another round of waves to their end. It brings a peacefulness that I miss out of my everyday life. For the last eight days, I have negotiated around the desires of my kids, wife and parents to provide a great vacation experience. I told my wife that I have done everything that everyone else wanted to do and have not done anything just for myself. As I look back, I find that I lied and told the truth both in that statement. I did do everything everyone else wanted. I juggled the concerns of everyone and made sure that we all had a great experience. That is what I did for myself. I like to make people happy and I like to make sure everyone has a good time. For me, in making sure that everyone else was satisfied, I was doing what I wanted the most. I guess at some point I will have to tell her that I did do what I wanted. Tonight, though, is all about me. I am sitting here on this balcony just for myself. I have spent the majority of the last eight days away from my computer. I was almost completely unplugged from work, with one minor slip on Thursday. I wanted to get back to a life that did not revolve around my job, and give myself back to my family. I had planned to check my e-mail every morning, but I was instructed by my manager not to even think about work, as I was heading out of the office last week. All of that is about to change. I will be plugged back in and working hard to catch up on Tuesday. The rat race will begin again and I will let my love of this place slip back from the front of my memory. Tonight, I celebrate my last night in paradise, for tomorrow I am heading home.