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Happy Easter everyone--or 'Secular Humanist Bunny Day,' as the case may be. I just got back from a glorious weekend of sun and fun in Sarasota, also known as bourgeois hell: a city almost entirely occupied by rich, old people. And, contrary to my paranoia, the car made it round-trip.

I spent most of Saturday with Michele, who always puts a smile on my face. It's impossible to be upset around her: she's got a bubbly energy that is literally contagious. We spent most of Saturday chillin' at the beach, lounging around in the sun. I think I actually got some color on my pallid Scotch-Irish skin.

Saturday night and Sunday I spent with my father. My Easter basket included coffee and hot sauce (do they know me, or what?). I got to see his new house and we had a fun Easter lunch together. He's getting much more equivocal in his old age, barely a remnant of the depressed and violent man I knew growing up. I told him, for instance, that I'd be teaching Marxism this summer and barely a comment was made.

It was the first time in months I got the hell outta Dodge, and it was a really good feeling. I spent a lot of time traveling up around the Northeast when I lived up there--weekend trips here or there. And, I usually travelled alone. It was the guarantee of some time by myself to put my thoughts in order, and to just feel the road. White line fever. It's a very relaxing (almost, dare I say--'zen').

I had a blast, although before bed last night I had a weird sensation. Usually when I travel, I check in with someone. "Yeah, I got here alright." "Guess what happened?" etc. But, realizing that no such call needed to be made, I found myself staring at the stars (which you can see much better than in Tampa) and actually missing the feeling of missing someone. But, at the same time there is a freedom, a release in this. And I knew that despite the fact that I had nobody to miss (and also for the first time in a while: nobody to cheat on me while I was gone, like on the NY trip or on the Cocoa trip) it didn't really bother me. I realized that I was there spending time with people who missed me. And that was a feeling I haven't had in a very long time.

I'm going to take a few more weekend trips this summer. My father bought a boat, which I have at my disposal also. But, perhaps I'll take someone else with me next time--roadtrip, anyone?