plan #12 – make time for friends

I’ve become something of a hermit over the past few years.

This is entirely my own fault. I have been spending the bulk of my time doing two things, both seemingly worthwhile: getting rest when I need it, and catching up on all the chores I ought to have done when I’ve been resting. This makes for a pretty monotonous and stressful life.

My health is a reason for not getting out more, but it should not be an excuse. I can choose – anytime I want – to use my energy to see people and have fun. Yes, the chores will pile up a bit, but they are piling up anyway, and I’m not getting any enjoyment out of it!

So today, on my day off, I didn’t clean my house. I didn’t sort all the piles of stuff in my bedroom that need to be sorted. I didn’t pay a single bill. I didn’t take a nap, and I didn’t go in to work for the day as I was tempted to do since I was home sick on Tuesday. (Disclaimer: I actually did go in to work, but that was only because Ina called to tell me that someone sent me flowers. I couldn’t let them sit there until next Tuesday!)

What did I do instead? I had fun with my friends. So. Much. Fun.

Nancy and I went out to Broder Soder for brunch and a peek at the Vintage Scandinavian Fair, then went back to her house to hang out for a while. After swinging by the office to get my flowers (and swinging by the house to walk the dog and run my 250 steps), I went over to Megan’s for a glass of wine, some lovely food and even better conversation. Megan and I went to the play together and enjoyed seeing the very regal Sofia (Eurydice) and the very devastated Quinland (Haemon) perform in Antigone.

But that wasn’t all! I was heading home when Nancy texted that they were going out after the play to get dessert at Marco’s. So I went out again, was treated to some fabulous bread pudding (Yum! Thanks, Dave!), got many hugs from Sophie, and made plans to go to New York with my little Hannah to see Hamilton. An excellent ending to a fantastic day.

Yes, my house is messy. Yes, I feel as though I could fall asleep right here on the keyboard. (Yes, I just fell asleep for 17 minutes after typing that.) But the key here is that I didn’t succumb to the lure of the bed or the tyranny of the undone tasks. I said YES to the people I love and made time to have fun with them. It was definitely the right choice.