Ale for the Soul

 Almost two weeks have passed since giving up employment with Enterprise Rent-A-Car.  Even with the incident involving the vehicle and the failed vacation plans, I have been very much enjoying the time of healing and restoration.  Last week Thursday, a friend graciously agreed to take me to Dublin in order to finalize the sale of the truck for scrap.  Of course I paid for gas and food as a way to say thank you for the accomodation.  In the time since losing vehicle independence, I have been utilizing public transportation once again.  (Bus use for days I have a lot of errands, and the bicycle when I only have one or two local places of questionable importance to go.)  Something I have lost sight of is how truly liberating it is to live simply.  Strip away all the material possessions, along with the initial wants and desires, that culture subtly tells us we must have, and the resulting peace and joy are overwhelming.  Keeping up with the Joneses was never for me, even if I get conned i

One week ago today, I found myself, once again, lying in bed wide awake well after midnight.  More frustrated and anxious than tired, the thought kept recurring that I can't keep doing this to myself.  Employment with Enterprise, while a blessing for this particular season of life, has turned extremely toxic and potentially causing irreperable harm to my mental and emotional health.  Bouts of insomnia and anxiety started out small but were ever-increasing, till finally I simply couldn't take it anymore.  Sometimes, I would physically get sick in the mornings knowing I had to report to work.  All this had to stop!  Cashing in on the last two "pesonal days", I submitted an immediate resignation via email to the team supervisor.  He and his superior called to cover the final details of separation with the company.  With the phone equipment subsequently boxed up and shipped back to the company, I can now breathe a huge sigh of relief.  Out of fairness to Enterprise, other

On Saturday the 10th, a sleepless night brought on a day off from work as I cashed in a personal day.  Not wanting to waste the day off, once I gained some much-needed sleep of course, I set my sights on Denton, Texas.  What exactly was in that cozy North Texas municipality that made me want to visit that day?  Who knows, but I figured the mystery of the unknown was worth the half-hour trek.  In the end, I only spent about two hours exploring the town, but it was a visit full of discovery and personal enrichment.  First on the list was a place to eat in order to level out my spiking blood-sugar.  Rounding the corner of the block after parking on a side street, I immediately spied J&J's Pizza.  Wanting more than the traditional pie, I ordered a pepperoni calzone.  The price was in line with what the dish should be, and the meal certainly didn't disappoint.  It was absolutely delicious!  (Memories of Nikki's Roma Pizza in Victoria, Texas flooded my mind.  The owner would