Valentine's Day

Iced

Best random day off ever.

Woke up at 8am (oh, the luxury of sleeping in) because last night the weather hotline announced a late start for scores of people due to the treacherous snow and ice. A late start was already nice, but when I checked my work website and saw they announced a snow day, it was like striking the lottery. I slumped back to bed, with an acute appreciation for my satin sheets and a warm husband.

Finally rolled out of bed at 10am (!) and grabbed breakfast in my PJs. Exchanged V-day gifts with E - I got roses and Dianne Reeves, he got earmuffs... the biggest gift, though, was the gift of ditching Windows. "Just say no" - after all the mockery from Mac Boy and continuing general dissatisfaction, I've been contemplating this for weeks, so of all days, I finally made the switch today. Goodbye Windows, hello Ubuntu. Today is Day 1 of my test drive (lily-livered me can't go cold turkey) - I'm running the OS off the DVD for now and I've been playing around with GIMP and OpenOffice. Still exploring options and plug-ins for non-Linux supported applications, but so far I'm a happy camper. E is elated and has been more than helpful with troubleshooting.

After geeking about my laptop, we bundled up and ventured out into the icy wonderland for lunch. I love the sight of pristine, freshly fallen snow. The neighbors' yards were coated in inches of it; everything was so bright 'n white. That's one of my favorite things about winter - the snow, that is. Oodles and oodles. It made me want to make a hundred little snowmen.

We crossed the slushy roads, found refuge at a cafe and settled in a cozy spot. Nothing like bagels and hot coffee along with a good book. E later left to spend some time at the lab, and I continued on to Coffee Tree Roasters for more coffee and more reading. I finally started 'The Time Traveler's Wife', after holding Will's copy hostage for months, and I'm really enjoying it. By page 103, I've fallen in love with Henry. (I've finished half the book now, and am sorry that the story will end soon.)

Dinner was at Bangkok Balcony, as promised, and we had our usual. The place was packed. The guy at the next table planned an elaborate surprise with roses and balloons; his girlfriend reciprocated with lots of kisses. Valentine's Day may be a pathetic Hallmark conspiracy and gimmick, but sometimes I do get warm fuzzies.

The whole day felt sinful; it was weird bumming around on a Wednesday, and I kept worrying that when I return to the office tomorrow, my co-workers will give me a look and say, you're in trouble you skiver. But it was an awesome day and E is... well, I'll do everyone a favor and save the mush. No wild monkey sex, but that's okay.

The weekend approaches. To bed!