I always hate April. April 15th specifically. Stupid tax day. Dan and I NEVER get a tax refund. I don't know if that's a good, or a bad thing. I suppose economists and accountants would claim it's good, that I'm not giving the government free money as they get to keep the interest earned off my 'over payment' in taxes. Pfft. What do they know. But, over the years I've just gotten used to having us break even, or maybe get $50 bucks if it's a red letter year. But something weird happened this year... we hit the tax return lotto. We got, dare I say, an actual REFUND! And, like any well-rounded adult, we thought that paying bills was the responsible and wise thing to do. When we stopped laughing at the thought of us being responsible and wise, we booked ourselves a trip to Maui, courtesy of our 2012 tax refund.
The second rarest thing in the Armstrong household is the Armstrong family going on a vacation. Unless you count me driving to the grocery store alone. It just doesn't happen. Don't get me wrong, we talk about it all the time, how great it would be to kiss the Blarney stone, to see the castles in Europe, to go on a safari, or muck about in Great Britain. Hell, it would be fun staying stateside and exploring the natural (and man-made) wonders here at home! I guess the nicest way to say it is this: we need a vacation to sit on our asses and do nothing. We've had so much shit happen that a whole lot of nothing sounds absolutely perfect. No kissing, no mucking, no exploring. Hence, Maui. It's perfect. I think the universe agrees that it's our time to go too.
Everything here in Colorado will still be here. The stupid doctors that can't figure out what's going on with me will all be here (and still have the same lack of information). Working from home allows work to go with me to Hawaii if I wanted it too (nope)... and Chloe is home-schooled so the island will be a learning tool/educational experience... aren't you jealous you didn't get a field trip to Hawaii? The timing is right and the refund was the impetus for our journey.
The older I get the more I think that it really is important to take time away from the stress of the daily grind. Even if it's just a few days, it is still very much necessary in maintaining health and happiness. Dan and I just got lucky this year. And hopefully whatever we gain from our respite will stick with us and keep us motivated to make it happen more frequently. I'm not saying it will cure all of our ails, but the stress has got to be responsible for a chunk of what ails us. Lord knows that a break from that certainly cannot hurt.
I've also decided to see a nutritionist. She's approximately 473 years old, in incredible health, and decided that my family really needed her services, so she squeezed us in. I won't see her for another month. I get the feeling I'll get more from visiting with her than I've gotten from seeing the doctors.
For example, I'm still waiting to find out if I have pulmonary hypertension. This, of course, is what is holding up surgery... I don't feel like having a stroke on the operating table. Call me crazy. I bet the nutritionist will be able to figure a few things out about me in my upcoming hour long visit.
So until I see the nutritionist, figure out if I have hypertension, and try to keep up with work at home and homeschooling, I will sing the praises of the refund Gods for giving me the much needed gift of a Hawaiian vacation. I won't stress that my body isn't made for a bathing suit, or that my luggage might get lost along the way... I'll just pack some flip flops and a swim suit in my carry-on and enjoy absolute everything about absolutely nothing.
