Labor Day Minus the Labor

It seemed kind of odd this year to take a "Labor Day" vacation when I don't have a job. After all, Labor Day is the day to observe and celebrate the "economic and social contributions of workers" of which I am currently a non-participant.

In all honesty, without a regular 9 to 5, my days have been all mixed up in my head. There is no truly definitive beginning and end to a work week. And, its kinda funny (but sadly true), I tend to keep track of the weekdays by my reality TV shows (like...I know The Bachelor Pad is Monday nights and Jersey Shore is Thursdays and I look so forward with anticipation to these two TV-centric evenings that my week revolves around them...to an extent...yeah...I probably shouldn't put that in writing).

Also funny and sad...I realize now that during the summer (especially in that one-bedroom apartment)...I treasured the weekdays, half-dreaded the weekends and looked forward to a reprieve from my more intensive weekend wifely/stepmotherly duties come Monday. The work week reversed.

Anyway...I digress. Because what I really wanted to write about today was how incredibly awesome my Labor Day vacation was. Though we already established that I am not a laborer, life has become a little too serious and scary for my liking lately and I certainly needed a vacation. According to Mr. Webster, a vacation is  "a respite or a time of respite from something". While I couldn't/can't really avoid the facts of life facing me at this juncture....traveling out of town on an airplane with my husband and step-daughter (who by the way...flew by herself...age 7...so proud!) to be hosted and entertained and fed and coddled by family (my wonderful in-laws) was just what this non-working girl needed. It was busy for sure, but it was all happiness...from reliving my husband's undergraduate years and cheering on his alma mater to eating Chicago-style pizza late in the evening. Pulling children around a big flat green yard in a big red wagon and cautiously holding a nearly-newborn baby, taking in her nearly-newborn baby smell. Sharing stories of what it's like to be married to a man from my husband's family while dining on a home-cooked-not-by-me meal and watching old home videos of my husband acting a-fool. Pure entertainment. 

Time of respite from something? Mission accomplished.