Sick Day

Even though things have been busy at work these past few weeks, most of my projects were out in other hands either with authors or freelancers. So, with relatively little to do during the day, I decided to "call in sick" on Wednesday. Fortunately my boss is great and she knows how hard we all work, so she doesn't mind if we occasinally call in sick and play hokey every now and then. Sometimes we can even schedule our "sick day" a few days in advance. All night Tuesday night, I was considering taking a sick day. I'm never really sick and have never had to take a real sick day, but I realized that I had about 12 days of sick time left for the rest of the year. So on Wednesday, I actually called in sick. I might as well use them, because they don't carry over into the next year.

On my day off I decided to go for a hike. I was awake relatively early, and I got to Chautauqua Park in Boulder at about 10:30 and I was ready to hike around the Flatirons. I had my camera with me and I was excited to take a lot of pictures. It's been a long time since I've had a photography excursion day, so I was really looking forward to it. Hiking around the Flatirons while taking a lot of pictures is one of my hobbies that completely absorbs me. It distracts me and takes me to a different place. I don't think about work or the drama at work. I don't think about the pressures of money (or the lack of money!). All I think about is the beauty surrounding me.

My hike turned into a very long one. I wandered around my usual trails and explored some trails that I haven't been on before. It was an absolutely beautiful day. It was sunny and clear and the temperature was in the 70s. For the most part the weather was calm, but it started to get windy near the end of my hike. By the time I was ready to go home, I realized that I had been hiking for about three hours and I turned back only because I was starving and needed food.

All in all it was a wonderful day. In spite of the fact that it was an occasionally strenuous hike, it was actually a very relaxing and peaceful way to spend the day off. When I was home, I devoured a huge lunch and a huge dinner and I slept like a rock. When I was back at work on Thursday and Friday, I felt completely different. I felt energized and my mind felt clear. Maybe I sweat out all the toxic energy and emotions on my hike. Either way, I felt great for the rest of the week. I wish taking a three-hour hike were something I could do every day!