I realize that it’s been several days since I posted anything, but life’s been busy. My wife and I are currently in the process of helping her parents move out of their house of 25 years, and part of that move requires us to move a piano into our house. In anticipation of that move, we have also been working in our own house; namely, strengthening the floor and painting an “accent wall” for the piano to sit in front of. Thankfully, we already have art pieces to hang on the wall.

It should go without saying, then, that I haven’t had the time I’d like to devote to the blog. I’ve made some headway with the articles I previously announced and begun a new piece to be announced shortly. In the absence of any finished work, I turned to the Daily Prompt to help me out. I found this question waiting for me: “Is the glass half full, or half empty?” My answer? It depends on how you look at the glass.

There are several of reasons to see the glass half empty. Today is a Sunday, which means the weekend is almost over; come tomorrow morning, it’s another five days to the weekend. It’s also raining, which means that the work I had planned to do in the yard will have to wait until next weekend, so long as the weather cooperates. Consider, too, the things that have gone wrong in the last few days: missing keys, spilled paint, lost headphones – all a cause for concern. Add to these frustrations the hectic schedule of a teacher nearing finals week: ensuring that all the material is taught with time enough to review, encouraging those students “on the edge” to put forth their best effort, creating a final exam (and answer key) that accurately reflects both what has been taught and what the students should know, preparing for summer school, and – even now – begin preparing for next year. (In my case, this involves creating a PowerPoint for my Geography class and planning a Chemistry class almost from scratch.)

Nevertheless, there are plenty of reasons to see the glass half full. Although the weekend is almost over, it’s been extremely profitable: I got a long-overdue haircut (much to the joy of my wife and mother-in-law), painted that accent wall mentioned earlier, and almost finished moving my in-laws belongings into storage. I also had a really good conversation with my parents. They’re making the 13-hour drive to come visit us in July, and we were able to make some plans for their visit. Our state tax return came in, which means I should be able to register for my next marathon (either the Outer Banks Marathon or the Charleston Marathon) with a little bit left over. The fact that it’s raining means that I was able to spend quality time with my wife; time we spent watching A Monster in Paris from Redbox and Scooby Doo: Mystery Inc. on Netflix.

However, I still haven’t answered the question. Is the glass half empty due to the frustrations of a busy weekend? Is it half full because, despite the frustrations, the last several days have been both profitable and enjoyable? For me, right now, my glass is half full for one simple reason I haven’t yet shared with you. Sitting on my desk and slightly to my right is a royal blue mug with yellow lettering proclaiming it to be from “Branko’s Patisserie du Jour,” and that mug has coffee in it.