Time off

Well, it's been a long holiday weekend here in Scotland this weekend - an extra long one caused by the Royal Wedding on Friday and May Day holiday today. And the second long weekend in 2 weeks. And unusually, at least for this weekend, the weather has been amazing. Amazingly good that is.

So, what have I been doing with myself? Well, I've:

• almost completed the spring cleaning of the entire flat. Only Cat's room to do now and he steadfastly refuses to join in
• sat in a fair few cafes and drunk lots of coffee
• spent time with friends - in person and on the phone. I even wrote a letter to one of them
• successfully avoided the Royal Wedding, only slip up was the Souvenier supplement in Saturday's paper
• had 2 lie-ins, which isn't bad out of 8 opportunities
• tried not to think about work too much - and mostly succeeded
• run a total of 22.8 miles - including 12.5 miles this Saturday. Contemplating another run this evening
• taken photos of myself doing all sorts of silly things, courtesy of Photo Scavenger Hunt
• had a picnic in the park
• sat in the sun and topped up my vitamin D
• thanked my lucky stars that my hair is now short and didn't get all mussed up in the wind
• been antiquing - to borrow a North American phrase
• been crafty with yarn and ceramics, although not at the same time
• cooked proper food, as well as using up what's in the freezer
• read and read and read

It's been really good fun. Most of the time. But at times it's also been tough. When you're on your own, long weekends can be a difficult time. 4 whole days stretched out ahead of you with no firm plans can feel like torture. It's no coincidence that I've filled my time off with so much to do that by the time I get back to work I'm exhausted. Sometimes that's the only way to get through it.

Do I mind? Yes, I do. I'd like to be able to enjoy my time off without worrying about whether I'll have enough to do to distract me from feeling lonely. Do I wish I was at work instead? No, I don't. I'd still rather be on holiday - and by packing it full to the rafters it never feels like a waste. All I'd like, I guess, is someone to share the fullness of it with me. Oh well, maybe next time!