On my 8 core machine with 16 GB of memory, plotting on a Crucial 2 TB SSD 3.0 I was able to plot it to completion in approximately 5 hours. My magnetic drives, all 7200 rpm take anywhere from 3 days to 10 days depending on the size. And...just like you...and many others, the hardest part is indeed the waiting time.
RE: How to CPU Plot your HDD Rig for Burst Mining.