06.08.04

Man, this week is definitely kicking my ass.

I woke up yesterday feeling like Monday had decided to slap me upside the head for no good reason. I�m still recovering. Usually, it�s not so bad coming back to work if I�ve gotten to relax over the weekend a little bit. But I happen to be married to the ultimate male socialite who decided to cash in his allotted �let�s-be-social-cards� for the month all in one weekend. That�s it, honey, you�re all out for a while.

It�s not that I�m anti-people. I enjoy spending a weekend night out with close friends every once in a while. But J likes to have a much bigger social circle than I do. He is more than happy to spend large amounts of time in the company of others, even if they are more �acquaintances� than �friends.� I would be perfectly content to spend a Friday night at home alone curled up with a movie and takeout. J needs to be around other people to feel that same contentment.

So I�m adjusting. Usually we compromise; one night out with friends, the other nights either out just the two of us or at home. But this weekend we just had a lot going on, and I got burnt out.

Friday night we met with a couple that we know from J�s graduate class. They are fun so I didn�t mind this one. We did end up going to see Harry Potter, which turned out to be pretty good. This new director really took the series to a better level. And that Emma Watson, who I really didn�t think was that great in the beginning (the hair, people), is really turning out to be the one most likely to have a successful post-Potter career, I think. Anyway, we had a good time. Great. Fine. Moving on.

Saturday we drove down to the San Diego area to attend a graduation event for the son of a family J has known for years. This wouldn�t have been so bad if a) graduation events weren�t so boring--especially when you don�t know the kid all that well, and b) the family hadn�t insisted that we go out afterwards and then back to their place even later to �catch up� (read: small talk about people that I�ve never met). We didn�t get home until 1 a.m.

THEN on Sunday, J had invited another friend (including wife and child) over to our place for dinner. Which involved things like �cleaning� and also �cooking.� And guess who did most of that? Okay, so J vacuumed. I admit, it was cute to watch their 3-year old play with Milo (the cat was so confused�what was this creature that looked like us but was so much smaller? Interesting�), but TWO Disney movies later, I was ready to reclaim my downtime. Not to mention my TV.

Sigh. I know, I�m a brat. But I�m so not a �couples� type person. I have my really close friends, most of whom if I want to see them, I spend time with them by myself. And if we do hang out with my married friends, well, J actually likes that so it�s no big deal. So it�s up to me to compromise. And I do. I just complain about it to you guys afterwards. Lucky you. Heh.

:::

In other news, I have, of course, noted the passing of former President Reagan. It makes me sad in the way of losing another piece of my childhood, but he did live a long and very eventful life. His name is forever linked in my mind to such major events as the Challenger tragedy, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the end of the Cold War. The truth is, most Americans felt like the world was a little bit safer after his presidency. He had his share of mistakes, just like every president, but I think all in all, he handled his run with dignity and optimism. Something all politicians could use a little more of these days.

before ~ after

P.S. Hate. Paris. Hilton. Hate.