Labor's Likelihood Lost

I find it funny that Labor Day is the one day when I have accomplished little to no labor whatsoever.

As I sit here, listening to a cricket orchestra outside my window, the night is still young. This has been a great weekend for recharging and taking things slow, culminating in today's (lack of) activity.

I suppose I should start on Saturday. My roommate Steve and I went out into the Rice Village area to do some exploring and investigating. Our first stop was Borders Books. Thank heaven there's one in this area, and an impressive one, too. Right as I stepped in the door, my mood lifted several points from 'pleasant' to 'WOOOOO!' On the first display table inside the store, my favorite authoring team, Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, had a sparkling new hardcover on display and 30% off. Naturally, I snatched a copy of it right up. While in the store, I also picked up season 3 of House, which has mysteriously increased my popularity around Martel by several points ^_^, and the newest DVD in an anime series I've been following. Steve picked up an anthology of famous speeches from different times throughout history. I may have to borrow it off of him sometime, it looks like a great read.

After Borders, the two of us started walking to our lunch stop, Chipotle. I know that they exist in Oregon, and I believe in Minnesota, too. As such, you should already know of Chipotle's supreme goodness. If not, go and find one and have a burrito or two for me. We followed Chipotle up with a light (?) dessert over at Ben & Jerry's. Since Steve is an exchange student from Hong Kong, he had never partaken of the sweet fruits of Vermont's chosen sons. He had Chunky Monkey, and I had Creme Brulee.

Continuing our tour, we made our way to Anime Avalon, a shop in Rice Village that specialized in all things Anime. To my dismay, we arrived to discover that they would be closing for business on the eighth of this month. Fortunately, that also meant 50% or more off everything in the store. Does the word 'JACKPOT' mean anything to anyone? All of their rental DVDs were only $5 apiece, and I was able to walk away with three complete Anime series, three plastic model building kits which I'll be sending on to my beloved brother, some other memorabilia, and a translated version of 'Brave Story,' a Japanese novel that was made into a movie that was playing in Japan during the time I was there.

Saturday night was full of interesting events. The first football game of the season for Rice against Nicholls Stage (we, ahem, didn't exactly win); Wiess College was hosting the first party of the year, aptly named, "The First Party of the Year"; the Houston Dynamo was playing against Kansas City; and I got on the wrong bus to go to said Dynamo game and ended up riding in a two-hour circle. Luckily, I had my new Preston & Child book to keep me company. Anyway, a torrential downpour began after I was on the (wrong) bus for about forty minutes, and I decided that my presence at the game this weekend wasn't meant to be. I just came back home. I'm still, however, trying to figure out why two separate bus routes would be labeled as 'Route 68,' and were only distinguished by which side of the platform they left from. Oh well, we learn by doing.

Sunday was rather uneventful. I went to church at South Main Baptist in the morning, then spent the rest of the day pretty much watching House, Tsubasa, and reading my new novel. I did get in an hour of practice, though, for my group fitness teaching, which starts this week - so I'm still staying active, even when I'm primarily spending my time sitting on my duff.

Today was, really, just an enhanced version of Sunday afternoon. I finished the book, watched several episodes of House, worked in the Martel weight room (staying active), and ate my three squares.

Back to work tomorrow, and hopefully the rest of my freakin' textbooks will arrive in the mail so I can keep up with my reading. I will not fall behind if it can be at all avoided.

Wish me luck, for tomorrow I return to the land of people who do things.