Can I go back to the east coast?

**Note: The following post was originally written back in July, 2010. In retrospect, the trip wasn't as fun as I thought it was and a week later, the relationship I was in was over due to an incredibly stupid argument."

I really didn't want to come home.

It didn't have so much to do with where I was so much as it had to do with the grim realization that I was going to be in for three very long days upon my return home.  I knew that there was a chance that I'd be working both jobs on Tuesday and Wednesday, plus another long one on Thursday just for good measure.

The confirmation of my shifts did not make my already illustrious start to the day seem any better.

Why?

It could have to do with the fact that we pulled back into town at 6am, about an hour before I had to start getting ready for the start of my day.  It meant working on about 2-3 hours of rough sleep, which I'm somehow managing to pull off at this point in time, although it's making me seriously question my judgement on cutting caffeine out of my diet.

The trip was a good time though.  I always enjoy getting to visit my mom, my sister, and her three mini-terrors, er, kids.  Nothing says I love you quite like getting bum rushed as I walked in the door, the final blow being delivered by my two year-old tank of a niece.  It feels good to know that they missed me that much (it had been a couple months since I last saw them all), but I can't wait until they stop trying to kill me out of happiness.

I did get to experience some things for the first time, which is the joy of my mom working the job she does.  This time was my first step into ocean water, something I had never done before.  I was also able to eat at a place that was themed around a rainforest, complete with a thunderstorm every half hour.  It was a pretty neat idea, albeit a costly one.  The check nearly stopped my heart, but you only live once, right?

The fireworks show on Sunday was pretty impressive.  My sister, her kids, my girlfriend, and her daughter camped out along the river to take in the view, and it was a spectacular view.  Nevermind the daughter kept trying to fall asleep and one of my sister's kids went down for the count despite the noise.

The trip back to the apartment sucked immensely, but I suppose the experience was worth it.  I can now say I walked through yet another major city's downtown region.