That's right, I just took a mini-vacation after I quit my job and before my last day of work, not too much for me to complain about right now. In all fairness, it was planned before I quit my job and is a requisite with my friends that I am not allowed to miss, the annual guys trip with my college buddies.

Although we are all still quite young, I am 26, we have clearly gotten increasingly tamer each year removed from college, in regards to both our choices of location and activities while vacationing. Two years ago was Vegas, last year was the Bahamas, and this year was the Outer Banks in North Carolina. I blame this completely on responsibility and commitment, oh how the American Dream gets in the way of things. Out of the 6 attendees this year, half of us are already living with a girlfriend, engaged, or married, whereas two years ago, nobody fell into any of these categories. Houses, car payments, grad school, weddings, debt, and on, and on...........This is precisely what I have managed to avoid the last 4 years, with the sole purpose of accumulating vested options high above water. And now I am exercising those options (sorry for the securities speak, it's engrained in me at this point) and using the proceeds to set myself free from all possible responsibility to travel aimlessly for the next 9 months or so. Don't get me wrong, we all write the script of our own lives, whether we want to believe it or not, and I think that starting a family and moving up the corporate ladder is extremely commendable........It's just not right for me, right now..... Of course I say this having worked my tail off the last 4 years in a pretty demanding work environment in which I feel I have gained excellent experience and put together a very strong resume. Thanks E*Trade. A wise man once said "You need to swim with the river for a while before you try to reverse course and go against it." I've decided it's time for me to reverse course for a while.

I told you! I spent it with my uncle in Alaska hunting wolverines!

So, back to the Outer Banks. "The details of our trip are quite inconsequential really.....very well, where do I begin?" We drove down to the OBX from Northern Virginia Thursday evening and stayed at the KOA campground in Rodanthe. "My father was a relentlessly self-improving boulangerie owner from Belgium with low grade narcolepsy and a penchant for buggery. My mother was a fifteen year old French prostitute named Chloe with webbed feet. My childhood was typical. Summers in Rangoon, luge lessons"...What???? I meant to say that the next 72 hours are easily summed up with relaxing by the pool & hot tub, walking the beach, fishing, napping, reading, exploring Cape Hatteras, attempting to start fires, cards, one noise violation, one round of mini-golf preceeded by an impressive power hour, and a Saturday night search for lodging resulting in a visit to McDonanld's in Hampton......."pretty standard really...... I highly suggest you try it."

Sweet!!!

Here is a link to my Outer Banks Photos.