UNITED STATES—Gosh, these past two weeks have been absolutely crazy. I mean crazy. Between work and the holidays my mind is fried. I really didn’t realize how crazy the holiday hustle and bustle can be. As a kid, I didn’t see it as a big deal; I thought our family was always busy. As an adult, I’m starting to realize the holiday hustle and bustle is just as crazy. I admit I enjoy having the Christmas holiday off. That is the one time during the year that I actually get off.

I’m not joking. Can you imagine working almost 364 days in a year if you never took a day off? You might think it is foreign, but there are those work horses out there who indulge in such. I’m not one of those people, but around the holidays my place of business just becomes super busy, so the chaos is chaotic. Between December 21 and December 26, I have no clue how much sleep I got, I feel like I got little if anything, except on Christmas Day because that is the one day during the year, I sleep until I cannot sleep, if possible. I don’t force my body to get up, I let myself rest as much as possible because the day before was work hell and the day after was work hell also.

With that said, I had a funeral to attend over the weekend, in the midst of still working. On Christmas Eve, I had to work, and when I got off work, I was rushing to the mall to pick up some last minute gifts and I absolutely hate going to the mall on Christmas Eve. You have to deal with crowds that are just unbelievable and people drive like absolute idiots. I’m sorry, I have never seen drivers so careless and flippant than on Xmas Eve where everyone is trying to find a parking spot and the notion of paying attention to the road just seems to disappear. Take leaving the mall, rushing home and wrapping gifts to ensure when people stop by or you make stops to family and friends you have their gift(s) ready to go. So Christmas morning arrives and it is time to gather up the gifts, and start making the rounds. Making phone calls, stopping by people’s homes, having a snack or a bit of food here and there, but also not staying too long because you have other places to go.

If you have to work the next day, which not only did I and a ton of family members I know had to work the day after. You realize you don’t want to be out all night, even though Christmas Day feels like the one day of the year that time moves like a snail which is an actual good thing. I don’t understand it, but as workers we have this weird psychology about work. Even if you have a day off, the day you have off, you’re always thinking I have to work the next day so your mind really can never be at rest which is a true bummer. If there is someone who knows how to alleviate this unnecessary worry or stress, please contact me ASAP.

I just feel like I am moving so much it is driving me bonkers as of late. I mean I’m leaving home at like seven or eight in the morning and I’m not getting home until seven or eight p.m. or later that day. I might clean myself up a bit and I’m hopping right into bed. I might tell myself I am going to lay down for a second or two, but in all truth America, I’m out cold. The only caveat is that it is so short-lived. I mean I sleep great for about 30 minutes to two hours, but I wish I could do that for a full six, seven or bless the powers that be eight hours.

The great thing is that we have about another week of this craziness of the holidays before we can actually decompress. After New Year’s Day, the opportunity to potentially rest becomes a reality for me. I cannot wait, I really cannot wait until I can take a two-day vacation to just sit on the couch or in bed and do nothing for 24 hours; my mind and body so needs it.