Spring Break 2024 Part 1: Paige And My 1-Year Anniversary
Hey everyone! It's been a while. The last installment I made was about Melody and Rob's wedding. The wedding was on March 2nd, and this installment is being posted on April 13th. A lot has come up over this last month, and I will be addressing it in some upcoming installments. The reason for the gap is not important for this installment. However, the gap in and of itself is…
My spring break was from Friday, March 29th, to Monday, April 8th. Now, April 4th just happened to be Paige and my 1-year anniversary. Originally, over my spring break, I wanted to take a trip to Florida so she could meet my family and we could still have the weekend to enjoy our anniversary. However, Paige's spring break started on the Monday after Melody and Rob’s wedding, so we decided to go on a weekend trip to Hocking Hills, which is about an hour southeast of Columbus.
I picked Paige up from Columbus State on Thursday the 4th; we got her bags and drove to Hocking Hills. The cabin we stayed at was owned by Lazy Lane Cabins, and it was called Castaway. After getting the keys we drove the half mile to where Castaway was. About halfway down the road that Castaway was on, it turned into a ravine with two forested hills on either side. On the left-hand hill was a steep gravel path, and the Castaway cabin was in the middle of the forest at the end of the path. It was romantic and secluded… in spite of the minor horror movie vibes.
The cabin itself was super homey. There was a hot tub on the front porch, though Paige and I had not noticed it and did not bring swimsuits. There were three rooms in the cabin, a living room/kitchen with a TV, a bedroom, and a bathroom. It was freezing cold when we got in there, so we immediately turned on the heat. After looking around, we realized we still needed a few essentials, so I drove on my own to a Kroger 13 minutes away, knowing that Paige would definitely get car sick if she came with me. By the time I got back, the cabin was really warm. We spent the night eating dinner and watching TV before we went to bed.
On Friday, we got up and ate breakfast. I got us coffee while Paige worked on an essay, and by the time she finished, it was time for lunch. After lunch, we started working on an outline for another book. Side note, I'm kind of mad that it took me a year to start utilizing her as a writing partner; she's really good at it. After we finished working on the outline for the day, we went to Old Man's Cave.
Now, for those of you who are not local to Ohio, Old Man's Cave is a really popular part of Hocking Hills State Park. It's named that because a hermit named Richard Rowe lived there back in the 1800s. I've been there a handful of times throughout my life, and Paige went there once when she was little. As we walked through this area I'd seen before, it was like I was seeing it for the first time.
I've been super stressed pretty much since September of last year when I finished writing the rough draft of my fourth book (A Writer's Place). I think that's because I have spent nearly 7 years motivated to get those books done, and now that Greattastic Adventures 2 and 3 are in my editor's hands, there is nothing I can do. My motivation isn't what it used to be. Plus, with trying to start a non-profit, work, and life in general, I don't know…I've just been off.
While I tend to have multiple gaps between installments per season, I think this is the most significant one that has ever happened, excluding the pandemic-related lockdown between seasons 2 and 3. Usually, the gaps happen because I’m waiting for something that is blog/podcast-worthy. But with all the stress that has been going on, I haven’t been feeling myself and it really hit after the wedding. But this cabin trip was exactly the break I needed; it recharged me, and I’m ready to get back on track!
To Be Continued…
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