Tomorrow begins a new era at work.

My "boss" is on vacation. I use the term "boss" loosely because while the guy is, technically, my superior, he's more of a peer. He's a year younger than me, I think, and we kind of compliment one another more than him just delegating things. I mean, he does do that, but I don't have to call him Mr. or anything.

So anyway, he's off for eight days and I get to run the show. Me. The guy who, a year ago today had just gotten this job, will be the one in charge of research and fact-checking. I was hired as an editorial assistant (that's the peon level in magazine publishing) who would do some fact-checking, but within about a week I was a fact-checker. But because I caught on and I guess, because he's more comfortable, he's made me the guy who runs the show while he's out sick or taking a single vacation day. But this time, it counts. Or something.

I'm hoping to use this eight-day run to bolster my case for a raise to be paid like a fact-checker (you know, be paid for the job I'm doing) to compensate, somewhat, for the 14-hour days I may encounter. OK, that only happened once, and it was this past Monday, but if it can happen once, it sure can happen again.

So with all this stuff to do at work, I may have less time for updating during the weekdays until Sept. 2. Not that it means I won't do it, but I just felt like throwing this warning out there. There's always down time, even for the "boss," and if I've read all my diaries and check all my e-mails and read through all my sports headlines, there may be some composing to be done. And there are the weekends.

Also, I'm growing a beard over here. I suppose I've actually grown it. But I don't like to use either of those terms, because I didn't really set out to do it, and I don't plan on keeping it for long. I simply didn't shave when I went to Maine nearly two weeks ago and when I came back a bit scruffy Casey said, "Why don't you keep it for a while?"

So I did. But now it's started to bother me, just a little. There's more of the itching, which, frankly, surprises me because it's now, just short of 14 days since I last put a razor to my cheeks, getting to where it's long enough to be soft.

The first couple of days at work brought some comments. Some said it made me look older, mature. Everyone said they liked it. A few made jokes -- "You know, Dan, most people grow beards in the winter." And, "You didn't go to Maine, you went for a facial hair transplant." Like I'm some Hollywood denizen who goes on "vacation" and comes back with a more taut face or a more puffy forehead. Or more hair.

So I was thinking about when I shave it off. I'll probably do it this weekend, when I have time and don't have to rush (or be late for work). I also want to play around with it. Like maybe shave off just a little on my cheeks, leaving a goatee and long, pointy, dirtbag sideburns. Do that for a day. Then shave the sideburns to leave a goatee (or shave the goatee to leave the sideburns). Another day. Then shave my chin, leaving a long, Old West mustache. Or shave the mustache and chin and leave a soul patch. Or go with the Old West mustache, then trim it to a regular mustache which, I told Casey when she suggested that, might be more of a porn star mustache because it's not fully grown in. The hair's still kinda pointy.

She said it's kind of weird kissing me, almost like it's someone else. And, of course, there's the bearded man sex. It's pretty much the same.

But what I do plan on doing when I shave, whether I do it all in one day or over several days, is take a picture at each stage. Just for the fun of it. That way, I can consider various disguises for if I'm ever on the run.

You know, because everyone should have a plan.