December is always a busy month. With the holidays come many more social commitments. Work holiday parties, work deadlines, time spent with friends before everyone leaves town for a week or two, plus all the gift shopping and wrapping and decorating on top of it. I always know this is coming, and despite my introvert tendencies, I'm usually excited about it. December also brings with it a jolt of energy.
At least it usually does. The long nights and cold air always seem to bring me to life. When the sun has set before I even leave the office, I'm left with a nice, long evening that always feels longer than it is. Cooler temperatures invigorate me. And the twinkling lights and good cheer keep my spirits up. Not to mention that the first (and second and third and maybe all of them) snow fall often has me almost literally skipping around my office.
This year I'm not feeling it. My social calendar has been as busy as ever. But instead of my usual excitement and energy I've been feeling lethargic. I'm going to blame a lot of it on the weather. Winter is simply refusing to show up. A week ago we actually turned the heat off and opened our windows because it was so warm outside. We've barely had a frost. And while it's been very wet, that's mostly just translated to a warm, muggy feel. Like summer, but dark.
The other reason I'm not feeling it is Kevin's work schedule, which has him in Hawaii for three weeks over Christmas and New Year's. I really shouldn't complain too much. He loves his job, and he'd been wanting to travel more. In the scheme of things this is only one Christmas. We'll have many more together in the future. And once this project is through his travel schedule should die down some, or at least become more reasonable and predictable.
But it does mean that I'm going to have a very small Christmas this year. We didn't get a tree or do any decorating, because I was worried about my ability to take it down by myself. Instead of a big home-cooked meal, I'll be going to a nice restaurant with my brother and Kevin's mom. Again, I shouldn't complain. I have family in the area, dinner will be nice, a few traditions are still in tact. But for someone who enjoys and has grown accustomed to huge, whirlwind Christmases full of family, food, and alcohol, it's hard not to feel at least a little let down this year.
I'm trying my best to look forward to the little things, like my four-day weekend coming up (also, thanks to the cruise, I can't take any extra time off for Christmas this year). The holiday is almost over, Kevin will be back home before I know it, and maybe winter will decide to show up at some point. Plus, I have all sorts of writing to catch up on. In the meantime, I'll muddle through as well as I can.
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