My Couch Put Out a Missing Ad For Me


Well Rambler's,

Last week I wrote about the differences in Canadian and European after-work culture (See Here). This week, I'd like to let you in on a little secret and give you all a little bit of an update.

Posts like the last one, are realizations that occur to me during the writing process. What does that mean? It means the beginning of the post is the idea I wanted to write about, and towards the end when I wrote about trying to redefine the way we recharge after a long day of work... that perspective only developed as I was writing my post. I use my blog both to share my perspectives, and to explore them myself.

So, last week I had a plan to write about my observation that Europeans in the countries I had visited were far more social on weeknights than people where I live are. As I wrote, I thought about my own experience out with friends mere hours before writing my post and realized that I felt much better than I would have had I simply come home, made dinner, and watched television as I normally would have done.

The concept was almost as new to me while I wrote it, as it was to you when you read it.

And so, for the past week I have been implementing my new discovery into my life and making more plans regardless of what day of the week it is. The results? I'm actually feeling better than ever. I look forward to plans with friends rather than dreading how tired I will be after work and thinking that I'd rather just go home and rest. Some nights I've had volunteer obligations or appointments pulling me away from the house, but others have been spent going to my friends for a movie and a bit of hot-tubbing, going out to dinner and karaoke, going to see friends for dinner and then heading over to the movies with them, and having friends over for a nice dinner at my place. The plans have been endless, but... so has my energy. The weight of work has been less heavy, I've been laughing more, sleeping better, and overall just less stressed and exhausted.

There were so many days where I just looked forward to getting home and having an opportunity to rest on the couch, but now I'm thinking my couch will soon be putting my face on one of those “Missing” ads on the side of milk cartons.

That's okay with me!

Like I said before, what works for one won't necessarily work for another. But by golly, right now this approach is really working for this Bra Street Rambler!

Anyway I've got to run, I've got plans to get ready for! When's the last time you made plans to go out with friends?

Cheers!
The Bra Street Rambler

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Keep Calm and Carry On My Wayward Son

What is it about a crisis, big or small, that makes us panic and freak out? Why does the unknown cause our hearts to beat faster and the little people in our brains to yell “Abort! Abort!” as they hit the big red self-destruct button? I’ve seen people jumping up and down freaking out about a little stove fire, completely forgetting the need to put it out, let alone the how.  I’ve seen those afraid of the dark forget they own candles and flashlights the moment the lights start to flicker.  I’ve seen a sober person at a party panicking as they try to locate someone to drive an injured individual to the hospital, completely forget that they themselves are qualified to drive.  The solutions are staring them in the face but they are momentarily reduced to the same frozen response a deer suffers when caught in the headlights.  A person can be the most level headed, logical person you’ve ever met, they could even be the most prepared for a situation, but w...
Read more

A Bra Among Bros

So if you’re like me, you probably tend to hang around guys more than you do girls.  Contrary to what other girls may think, this has nothing to do with being promiscuous or trying to pick up. Alright, for some of you it might be, and in such cases have fun.  Honestly who am I to judge, it’s your body and your decision to do with it as you please.  This is the twenty first century and the double standard of guys being labeled heroes while girls are being labeled as sluts is a concept that really does need to be fed to a pool of starving piranhas. Destroy the mindset.  Everyone is human, everyone has needs, and if everyone involved is of age and it isn’t hurting anyone… why should it be anyone else’s business? Back on point, guys are usually just easier to get along with (Though there are always a small group of female exceptions).  The conversations are more often than not less dramatic, the friendships are easier to maintain, and you have less necessity ...
Read more

Recharging Your Social

If you're an introvert, you know what it's like to be peopled-out. While I am one of those few people who is evenly distributed between being an introvert and an extrovert, I often find that working in public service results in a higher need for me to set hanging out with friends aside in order to recharge my social batteries. Extroverts sometimes have difficulty understanding this need as they try to present the fact that they are low maintenance/really easy going, or just want to do something relaxing together. In their mind, watching a movie with them is no different than watching a movie alone as there would be little communication going on anyway. While it is true that some people are easier to be around in certain moods, sometimes a need to recharge means a need to be completely alone with yourself for a while.  For an introvert, or someone with introvert tendencies, being tired doesn't always mean you are sleepy, it means you are emotionally drained in t...
Read more