mumblings, an impromptu trip, my itinerary

last night was my first night back on overnight emergency. we saw ONLY cats. eight of them, i think. it was a typical slow monday night during our (yes, it's apparently real) recession. i enjoyed it, because i am a fan of the kitties. not a single dog came our way. it was odd...something to do with the cold, snowy-ish weather? i don't know, just a theory.

so the holidays are always a little depressing. i'm not sure why. i'm lucky enough to have great family and friends with whom to spend it, and despite the fact that i'm working on christmas this year, i do have the 3 days off beforehand to spend with friends and family. my schedule this month is awful. i'm working 20 days of 31 - and 7 of those off days are next week! in a real job with 40 hour weeks, that would be fine. in my life, with 90-100 hour weeks...not so fine. the thought of my 5 days on starting christmas and extending through the weekend is giving me nightmares (it's going to be very, very bad- especially if thanksgiving was any indicator). ah well. i'll survive.

the point of that was that i talked to my close friend who is doing her internship in manhattan. she is lonely, recently broke up with her boyfriend, works 6-7 days a week, and is very, very depressed. she called me in tears last night while i was at work.

so...i'm a bit depressed too. holiday blues, i suppose. i have the whole next week off, and tickets to NYC are $234 round trip from atlanta (+37 for the shuttle to atlanta). so guess what? i'm going to NYC next week for a spur of the moment trip - leaving early tuesday morning and returning sunday. i'm so excited i can barely stand it! i'll get to see one of the people i love most in the world, in a city i love, for 5 days. i love NYC in the winter, even though it's cold. i find rockefeller center and the tree and all the displays in the windows to be romantic. it would be nice to someday go to NYC in the spring...but...perhaps another time.

i'm thrilled thrilled thrilled thrilled thrilled!!!

i'm also flying to orlando in january to attend the annual north atlantic veterinary conference (NAVC). i'm renting a car and staying with my grandparents for the week (it's a long commute...but i figure it's worth the family time - and my CE funds pay for everything). so i'll be gone for a week in mid/late january too. then in february, i go to north carolina state for a rotation in cardiology. i'll be driving to NC State.

i'm gallivanting all over the place, eh? it'll keep me occupied and lively, which is good. sometimes i think i'm getting into a rut.