Brain off

I've been working a lot lately. Way too much. Most nights I'm in the office late, checking in at home, and then working at least a few hours each weekend day, if not for an entire day. Somehow its easier to work 10 hours if you can do it with Sex and the City on the TV. Of course you have to really like Sex and the City. (How could Carrie have cheated on Aidan? That bitch drives me crazy in season three.)

The reason behind my pseudo-complaining about work is this; while I definitely feel overworked, I also feel like I'm having a lot of fun (read: drinking a lot). I realized today I don't have a ton of the down time I used to when I would just kick it on the couch and watch my ex-TV Boyfriend. I'm either ramped up working or ramped up drinking, with not a lot in between. And I'm not having just a glass or two of wine like I used to. I'm drinking for mileage. It's like I'm trying to cram all the fun into the few hours I have, and I'm not making wise decisions.

Case in point: Jenna invited me to a BBQ at her friend Kathleen's on Saturday. I've been to another one and loved everyone there, so I shut down the computer for the afternoon and scheduled some fun time, fully expecting to be back home and working by 9pm. Um, yeah, that didn't happen. I was drinking sangria all day and was then very easily coerced into playing Flip Cup by a bunch of Aussies with cute accents. Freakin' foreigners. It doesn't really matter how you play, but it does involve way too much cheap beer. PBR and Bud Light to be exact (what is with me and drinking beer lately?). I was hammered, and I had absolutely turned my brain off at some point. Sometime before Flip Cup for sure.

Apparently this is how I've fallen into dealing with stress these days. Probably not the best solution, but it could be worse. I haven't completely fallen apart... I still eat well and make it to the gym to run and bike my ass off (literally; my skinny jeans from last year are now my "relaxed fit" jeans... sweet). My body used to remind me that I was stressed by creating painful stomach aches, in case I had forgotten for a second that the world was falling down on me. That sucked, so this is much better.

So, if you end up with strange text messages from me in the coming month, I haven't actually lost my mind, I've simply turned my brain off. It'll be back on the next morning when you are welcome to call and make fun of me. Just don't laugh too loudly into the phone.