The 62 hours from 5:30pm on Friday, April 2 through when my alarm goes off at 7:30am on Monday, April 5 is my standard, typical weekend. This one is of particular importance though, as this one marks, as I refer to it to my friends, “The End of the Sabbatical”. For the past year, I have been treated to a drastic reduction of my job. Mid-March through mid-May, 2020 was spent completely shut down, but with full pay. I don’t take that lightly, and I feel very lucky for it. Then, we returned to work, but with 50% of the work week done from home. And it has been that way ever since. Until April 5, when we open our doors to the public more, and we are expected to spend as much time in the building as possible. With the state-wide mask mandate lifting, folks will be so much harder to control when they walk into our building maskless. Many co-workers are dreading it; at least this company is one of the VERY FEW in town to take mask mandates seriously; we will absolutely remove anyone not complying, and many patrons are not used to being watched and controlled like that… often responding with hostility.
Had the shutdown not happened last March, I very likely would have quit this job. It is an uncomfortable work environment, given 1 or 2 coworkers’ presence there, but also for a few other reasons that I won’t dwell on here. Also, it is getting harder and harder to care about the needs of increasingly nasty patrons. It was so easy to do 4-hour morning shifts in the building, before we opened for business; I would get out of there before we let people in. People that look down at us for actually having mask, distancing, and building capacity rules.
So, this is my last weekend of general peace. In a lot of ways, this weekend is perfect for the writing prompt, where we are asked to think about time. This past year has been nothing but considering time. Dreading the light at the end of the tunnel, which is the speeding train of “returning to work as normal”, barreling towards me. This has been one giant countdown, and now, this weekend, is the end. I have heard nothing but a ticking clock in my head for over a year now, counting down to this Monday.
It’s kind of funny, as on Saturday morning of this weekend, I saw a story in the NY TImes about how people aren’t wanting to return to work in the office. I’m glad it’s not just me. I think my workplace is poisonous to my mental health a lot of the time. This last weekend, I feel the need to be with good people. I need to surround myself with the reasons why being in this place is a good thing. Before my job drags me under the water’s surface again, I want one last reminder that the world is actually a good place. This weekend. Needs to be spent well. Time used wisely. Not wasted. Valued. Filled with goodness. I am grateful for the people I know here. I love them.
A very quick rundown of my weekend:
Friday Night
– Hubby with his weekly zoom session with the group he volunteers for here in town.
– Finishing my book club book – ESO (video game)
Saturday Morning
– ESO
– Got ready to leave
Saturday Afternoon
– Walgreens
– Lunch
– McCulloch Park – disc golf
– Home alone
Saturday Night
– Pizza
– Walk (now that it’s warm)
– Japanese Noise Rock & ‘80s-’90s “college rock”
– typing this.
Sunday Morning
– Woke up late, breakfast
Sunday Afternoon
– A friend came over (we are all vaccinated, don’t worry)
Sunday Night
– Our D&D game was cancelled because 1 of the players couldn’t make it.
– Listened to music and chatted online with friends until it was time for bed.
Monday Morning
– I woke up an hour before my alarm
– Laid there and gathered the gumption to go do my day