Heh, well I almost don’t even know where to start and where to end with this post. I have so much stuff going on in my head. Last week, after tidying work things up after the weekend’s tournaments and what not, I struck out on a mini-holiday to sunny Miami. Late June in Miami is supposed to be their offseason, and the general idea was to keep to myself, relax, and destress as much as possible. I’ve always enjoyed taking off on my own like this, being in a strange city alone doesn’t appeal to most people, as far as I can tell, but there is something about the anonymity of it that I really seem to enjoy. I could tell, even from the reactions of the people who work in the hospitality industry down there, that most people seem to view people who are on vacation alone like they are some kind of freaks.

Well, Miami is a beautiful city, the weather was gorgeous for the most part, despite forecasts which said otherwise, and the people were friendly and fun. For the first couple of days, I chose to keep to myself, lying by the pool and reading books, so many books in fact, that I had to run to a nearby bookstore during my lunch wandering the second day to pick up some more material to keep me busy. I will leave the book notes for another entry in the next few days. As the trip progressed, I met some awesome and interesting people who I spent a bunch of time with. I firmly believe that things happen for a reason, and I return with a reinforcement of that opinion. I return refreshed, happier, and far less stressed out than when I left. I wish I could have been gone more than five days, but, fear not, I'm heading up North for some quality time with my family, which is long overdue, this weekend for a couple of days. In the meantime, there seem to be a sheer multitude of work things that need my attention. I guess I should make a couple of notes about places I went to in Miami that I would recommend, since I took pretty copious notes and a bunch of pictures while I was there, but that will have to wait for now.