Every once in a while I have an out of body experience and I can see myself down here on Earth, with all the people and things that are pulling me in a hundred different directions.
Work is incredibly busy, we're preparing for either trial or mediation in two of our biggest cases, and I feel like I'm in a perpetual state of "fallen behind" on all of my tasks.
April and May are insane months on my calendar. Add to that the fact that I have yet to finish the touch up paint in our new bathroom, laundry is always waiting to be folded, the grape vines need to be tied up (they're dragging on the ground now), the guest bedroom needs to be completed, the garage still has boxes of books and documents we stashed in there during our remodel, my boys need their daily walks, they need food and attention, and I need food and attention, and Ed needs food and attention, and we all need sleep, and blah, blah, blah, blah....and it feels like a wave of tasks is always ready to drown me at any moment under its weight.
For the most part it is work, but there is also the endless soap opera with family issues. I hate when I arrive home so exhausted that I'm ready to sleep at 7 p.m. I start the day with a "plan" in my head that at the end of my work day I'll return home and complete tasks on my never-ending, ever-growing "to do" list. I'm so motivated and energized. By the time the end of my workday rolls around, I can barely drag myself to my car. I get home and my "plan" goes right out the window. Sheesh.
I waited tables and bartended since I was 13 years old, all through high school, college, law school, and even for some time after that. There's an expression in the food industry for when you are buried with a ton of tables, drink orders, food service, cranky customers, and you've gotte PEE real bad in the midst of it all. It's called being "in the weeds".
Well, folks, I am officially in the weeds. Wish me luck!
For more A-Z Mondays fun, go to Jen's blog at http://unglazed.blogspot.com .
11 comments:
I hope your weeds get thinned soon. Sorry you have so much going on....hugs, suz
hoping the weeds are thinned soon. Thinking of you, Ed, and your furbabies..
Yep, you need some weed-be-gone.
Hang in there and concentrate on the important things-food, rest hugs and kisses for the two and four legged members of your family.
This is not a good feeling.
First thing: breathe.
After that, it's up to you what is most important, but ya gotta breathe, dear friend.
I have a friend who served in the Navy for years, and he used to say, "I'm shooting the alligator closest to the boat!" I loved that. Good advice!
Sending hugs for encouragement.
When I waited tables- I always seemed to be in the weeds. So much so, the other girls would say that Erica was "In the WOODS".
You sound like you are in the woods... I hope you find a moment to come up for air :)
Yes! I remember "in the weeds" from my days as a server.
(Speaking of which, have you seen "Waiting"? HILARIOUS movie on being a server... you will laugh until you pee your pants... WELL WORTH renting!)
I can totally understand your sentiments and I find myself this evening feeling VERY melancholy. You see, two years ago, when I started my OWN business, I was so THRILLED about the "time freedom" I was about to have.
Well, now that the recession caused my business to tank and I am returning to work (tomorrow - yay!) I am feeling VERY sad about the fact that I am LOSING that time freedom!
Yes, I am SOOOO thankful to have an income again! And yes, I am SO thankful to have a JOB after 4 months of aggressively looking! But DAMN, will I miss the time freedom that I carved out for myself and my children.
And that has left me incredibly melancholy tonight.
P.S. On a practical perspective.... for YOU! (sorry I talk about myself so much... bad habit). Check out the book "Choosing to Cheat: Who Wins When Family and Work Collide". Excellent little book on this VERY topic. The author is Andy Stanley. Amazon carries it.
Don't let the weeds get the best of you. I learned something a while back. Work is just that- work. Your personal life is more important. Make sure you make time for both!
When I go home at night and leave the parking lot, I "cut the cord" between my brain and work. I "plug in" the next day.
Yep, I take that trip into the weeds from time to time; I know the feeling. Fortunately, it always passes, eventually, and I have to re-balance, drop the workaholism and "get a life" again. I always force a little free time into my day - unfortunately, I do this by sleeping less (not recommended!)
And then there is the cliche: Nobody dies with an empty in basket...
Take a deep breath, fire up the lawn mower for those weeds, and remember it can always, ALWAYS get worse.
Take care of yourself, Ed, and your furbabies. Everything else can wait.
In the weeds, I need to remember that phrase. I've heard it before but had no idea what it meant. Hope you get your weeds under control soon.
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