Extended-family Christmas trip in Adventures in paradise

I woke up, instinctively, at around 4:30am this morning, after passing out at around 1am after I got home from work. The sun is now well and truly up as it’s 6:30am as I’m typing this. It comes up really early in the Summer months here, probably even around the time I awoke.
Such a weird feeling, considering I’ve gone to bed at around 7am some days this week. To wake up three hours before I’ve gone to sleep on other days, is just plain fucking weird :P

I’m picking up my hire car at around 9am, so I’ve given myself plenty of time to have breakfast and go do that. I have that excited not-quite-awake feeling going on at the moment. It happens every time. I’m still not quite sure how my body knows something exciting or important is happening, but it always does. I didn’t even need the alarm I set for 7:30am. That’s still an hour away!

I do know however that I’m going to be tired as fuck by the time this afternoon rolls around, and I’ll have the big drive back ahead of me. I told my manager if I’m late for work, it’ll be because I’m stuck on the highway. I think I should be fine though. I do have a feeling a lot of people will be out driving because they are on Christmas holidays now though, and I can’t predict these things, so better to be prepared.

I really don’t think I will be out there all that long. I’ll probably just be polite, say hello to a few rellies I haven’t seen for most of the year, and put my escape plan into action haha. The fact that I’ll be doing that near-exact same trip a few days later into next week kind of just makes me feel like I want to get this one over with. This trip is the extended family Christmas lunch.
Next week is MY family’s Christmas break. I’ve been thinking I might even stay out there for two nights for that one. Mum will really appreciate it if I do. I just know myself too well. I’ll see it as being a teenager again, where I was stuck in a small town (or in my case, a farm) and I’ll be bored shitless in no time. Luckily my parents do have cable TV haha. And I’ll have the car so I can go escape and explore or whatever. I’ll probably go and visit the graveyard and pay my respects as I tend to do when I’m out there. Why not? I have no idea if the dead know, or if once you’re gone that’s it, but still, there’s something… calming (I think is the word I’m looking for)… about it. These people I knew who were taken too early and deserve to celebrate Christmas too. I dunno. It’s probably silly. Death is one of the things of life we can never come back and tell people about haha. Unless you’re ghost, I suppose :P

So the plan is to spent maybe three, four hours out there, come home in time to get ready for work, work, be tired as all hell, be easily agitated because I’m so tired, come home and pass out for who knows however many hours.

Shit, I really do know myself too well.

I got a copy of my new contract for work, which I’ll apparently be starting in two weeks to give me time to adjust my sleeping pattern (although I still have to work the next two weeks, so who knows how well that will go down). Turns out it’s 22 hours instead of 20, so score. It’ll be a Thursday afternoon for 4 hours, finishing by 7pm (wow), Friday is pretty much a write-off as it’s 6:30am until 5pm, but score on the weekend evening off, and Saturday is 6:30am until 3pm.

How fucking incredible is that roster!?? Sunday, Monday, Tuesday AND Wednesday off.

Well, for now. We’ll see how well that goes into the New Year.
Pretty cool though.

Wish me luck with these boring rellies. I asked my Aunty if she wanted me to bring anything specific, and she goes ‘Maybe just some soft-drink’ (as though I’m still a kid or something!). I could have totally rocked up with some snazzy platter or something, but hey, sure, soft drink is easy. I’ll just pick up some on the way.

I just hope this isn’t awkward. I truly am the only gay in my entire extended family. Like even for generations that I’m aware of. Not even a gay uncle or anything, you know, like normal families have haha.