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Today is my last day at work. I'm starting a brand-new job on Monday that I'm really excited about. But for today, and probably this weekend too, I want to do my best to honor the discomfort I'm feeling right now.
My mom, having raised with my dad three teenagers successfully to adulthood, is pretty good when it comes to dealing with stress. (Sorry, parents. We definitely didn't make it easy.) She more or less introduced us to the concept of self-care, by letting us each take one day off per semester at our discretion, which we called a "mental health day." No judgment, no expectations...she'd call the school, and let us stay home to sleep, watch bad daytime TV, catch up on homework...whatever made us feel better and less stressed. I'm so glad that was built into my life before I got to college, and entered the workforce. I didn't recognize it as self-care then, but I definitely do now, and am very grateful for the foundation it created.
Her favorite way to describe situations like this, and one that I've internalized, is like the trapeze act at a circus. Right now, I'm in between trapezes. The next one is coming straight for my hands, but since I haven't grabbed it yet, it's a little scary and stressful.
Anyway, I've had this job for three-and-a-half years; the longest I've had any job since I graduated college in 2009. I really like it. I enjoy the work and find it just the right amount of challenging. I love my co-workers and I'm going to miss them so. much. But it's too far away from where we live, and it's time to move on to the next step in my digital communications career: higher ed. I'm also super pumped to exercise a little bit more of my social justice background (thanks Mt. Holyoke!), since I'm headed to a community college.
But today...today is weird. Most of my office nook is packed up, including my space heater (sorry, cold feet). No more frames on the wall, or snacks in my bookcase, or art projects made by my co-workers' kids. I'm going to be tying up as many loose ends today as I can -- including figuring out how to change my voicemail password. One last lunch with my department. Dragging one of those big blue IKEA bags out to my car. Saying goodbye to the horses I drive past every day.
And this weekend, I'm going to do my best to honor this time in my life: the weirdness, the excitement, the anxiety, the sadness, the anticipation. I'm going to be kind, do my best to sleep and eat well, go to yoga. Probably have a good cry ;) And then grab the next trapeze with a clear head and eager spirit.
Things to do this weekend:
- Join the Feminist Sticker Club
- Send baby vibes to someone trying to conceive
- Explore the possibility of a last-minute weekend getaway
- DIY something new for your apartment
- Figure out the best time to go thrifting
- Giggle at these history jokes
- Try one of these ways to take a feminist stand in your daily life (I've got to work on #2)
My goals for the coming week:
- Figure out what to have for lunch now that I'm not eating in a dining hall anymore...this post looks promising
- Paint my nails
- Put away our summer clothes, and unpack our winter ones (yay sweaters!)
- Finish my Google AdWords certification
- Sew
- Go to yoga
- Put together a housewarming package for a friend
- Start exercising regularly again
