after a long, tiring evening tuesday night, i spent some nice quality rest & relaxation time last night at home. i got home a little bit later from work than usual, staying in the office until 4.30pm to taking care of some staffing concerns. after a nice meditation session, i had a nice, easy run going at a slower pace than normal but running a tougher “course” on the treadmill (which just means steeper inclines). i had a nice simple dinner, finished watching the Mets survive and barely winning a game in which they had an 8-run lead, took a nice shower and ended the evening by finishing up The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. and after waking up this morning, i feel great and ready to take on the day.

i have to admit that all this week i’ve been feeling pretty good. it’s been a long time since i’ve felt this content and balanced. my mood has certainly improved and i don’t feel agitated as much anymore. i think a lot of this has been due to a change in perspective and to some normalcy returning to my life.

it’s been a while since i’ve had time to myself where i can just have an evening to myself. a friend of mine came over two weeks ago and while we were sitting on my comfy couch talking, she mentioned that if she needs have one weekend night to herself. i can certainly relate to that. i love being able to spend the evening at home with a good book, good music and on occasion, good company. it helps me keep a balance in a life is often frantic and busy. and i think one of the reasons that i haven’t felt balanced in a while is because i’ve been busy with life and didn’t have any “me time”.

i’m a person who needs his “me time”. i need time to unwind and to just “be”. i’m not one of those people who always feel like they have to be out with people friday and saturday nights or who feel better about themselves when they have people always asking them to hang out. i’m kind of a homebody who would prefer to spend a quiet evening at home with friends over a nice dinner and bottle of wine. some of my best memories of the summer include watching movies at my house and reading books with a friend. i don’t need to go to bars, clubs, etc. i’m done with the “stay out until stupid hours of the morning doing stupid things” phase of my life; my college life was full of crazy stunts, parties where you wake up in the morning wondering where exactly you are and just general mayhem. that’s not to say that i don’t enjoy doing those things every once in a while. i just don’t feel like i need that in order to be happy.

with the summer winding down and fall quickly approaching, this “me time” is going to be even more precious. soon i’ll be busy tuesday, wednesday, thursday and sunday nights with much of the other nights filled with lesson planning, studying and required reading. my travel for work will be slowing down dramatically and that’s affected my mindset very positively; knowing where i’ll be and having some stability will definitely be beneficial to me and to my relationships.

so when i look to the last four months of this year, i see nothing but happiness, contentment and good things :)