Post vacation fatigue

I seem to be more tired when I get back from vacation even though I slept a lot every day. Our first day in New Hampshire was a recovery day since we got in on Saturday around 8pm. We left DC a little after 5am (up between 3:30-4am) and stopped in Massachusetts to see some friends of mine just outside of Boston. After dinner, we completed the drive up to the seacoast. Along the way, we had numerous stops to let the dog out to pee and and one point (early on) so that we could nap. We were entertained with the audiobook (I prefer to call it a 'book on tape' even though it's a CD) "Twilight" throughout the trip. Once in NH, we didn't do much on Saturday except unpack, set up the bed, and use it.

I knew my GF's mom woke up at 4am and then got up at 4:30am, but I wasn't really expecting it. Well, what I wasn't expecting was the dog to get all excited to hear that she was up and want to greet her. The next thing I know the sun is shining through the blinds and my GF announcing it's a lovely 6:30am.

WTF

I go back to bed until 8am. We get up and do some stuff, but nothing of importance since I can't remember any of it, and go back to bed at 10am until noon. It felt like it should be 3pm. We finally get up and take the dog on 4.5 mile walk. The sun was high and he's wiped out. Even though the humidity is a lot lower in NH, he didn't like the high 70s heat. We go out for lunch with her parents (blueberry pancakes) before gathering up the dog and heading up to see a friend of my GF's and her two kids.

I'll say it now, I suck at Wii. I knew I'd lose to an 8 yr old in boxing when he told me upfront "Just to let you know, I'm pretty good at this." I should've just set the controller down right there and walked away, but had to prove that years of watching friends play "Mike Tyson's Knockout" on Nintendo wasn't enough to help me that night. Later I was able to beat my GF in tennis to set the record straight of who the boss is in our household..

Labor Day was a planned hike of Mt. Willard up in the White Mountains. It was a long day as we left around 7am to pick up her sister and nieces an hour away before heading up north. Missing our exit on the Kancamagus Highway just allowed us to take another route to our destination. I would say it was the scenic route, but any road in that area is scenic even though it was hard to see from the 3rd row of the Isuzu Avenger where I shared a seat with the dog. The hike didn't go as planned as her sister and mom turned around about half way up, so my GF and I continued to the top with her nieces and the dog where we snacked on PBJ's. They were pretty proud of themselves for having made it and enjoyed the view from the top. The trip down was a little quicker, but still slower than what I'm used to going. We did stop frequently so they could have water, which my GF and I were carrying for them. We each had a Camelbak that holds a 3L bladder, plus we each had two 24oz bottles, and she had an additional 70oz bladder in her pack just in case. At one point, she was giving her 4-year old niece a piggy back ride while I had my pack on, her pack on my front, and the dog attached to my waist. Hard to say who got the raw end of the deal. ;)

We stopped to see some waterfalls and drove the Kancamagus Highway back to 93 to head home. I had moved up to the 2nd row since the 11 year old wanted to be with the dog (and away from her sister). I was reconsidering this decision since she and the dog slept and the rest of us were left playing "I Spy" with the 4 year old. We were trying anything to get her to "rest" and almost went as far as playing "Who can be quietest the longest". We found out the next day that she finally hit the 'off' switch at 10:30pm. I wish I had that kind of energy.

Tuesday was all about shopping and sightseeing. We started off with brunch at The Friendly Toast before walking around Portsmouth for a bit and then heading up to Maine. My GF wasn't feeling well so we parked the car so she could nap and I listened to more of "Twilight". When she was feeling better, we sat on a bench across from the Nubble Lighthouse in York Beach, ME. It was nice to people watch as well as to just sit quietly.

We then headed over to Stonewall Kitchen for some jam. I got my mom a Christmas present from there, but didn't want to spend too much as we were next going to Kittery Trading Post as well as the Outlets in Kittery. All in all, for the day I picked up a few items at Banana Republic, Under Armour, a couple Sporthill hats, running shorts, and trail running shoes. I'm trying to get away from my Vasque Velocity's that I've been wearing for over 5 years, so we'll see how these new ones work out. I might wear then for a few miles of The Ring this weekend, but who knows.

We were too tired to do much packing that night and were up at 5am Wednesday. I did a quick run while she walked the dog and then we started packing after showers. On the road around 8:30-9am was a little later than anticipated, stopped a lot for doggie breaks and a nap, but we got into DC a little before 7pm with no major traffic problems. We finished "Twilight" and started "New Moon". With about 12 more hours to go, I don't know if we'll be finishing it anytime soon. Unpacking included putting the food away and throwing the bags of dirty laundry into the basement. We chilled and watch some recorded TV before hitting the sack much later than planned.

My internal clock is still set to vacation time as I never heard the alarm go off this morning, nor do I recall it being turned off, and I woke up at 7:30am.. absolutely missing my run. Oops. I was in the office only a few minutes past 8am, which is par for me, but it has been a less than productive day.

Who knows when I'll get back on schedule with a race this weekend and a planned day off (to recover from said race) on Monday. I've been away from Crossfit since last Wednesday and it sure feels like it.

I need a day off to recover from my vacation.