What happened to my fun filled weekend nights?

Can my life really be this lame?  The answer is yes, yes my life is lame.  Ok I should clarify... my life really isn't lame but I don't know what happened to those days or I should say evening and weekends where I actually did things...anything.  Tonight is Friday night and do you know what I did?  Hopefully you can relate - otherwise my weekends are really becoming sad.  I went to Walmart to pick up a few things including dog cookies for the 4 dogs I live with, I came home made dinner for my roommate and her partner and then we watched re-runs of Criminal Minds, Law & Order and Law & Order SVU!  And everyone headed to bed at 10 pm! I mean what the hell is going on! Sadly this is not a chance occurrence  as most of my Friday and Saturday nights are spent at home with food and roommates, sometimes we get daring and we watch a movie! Ooh I know exciting - NOT!

I really don't know what happened to the days of going out even if it was just to the pub with friends, having a few drinks maybe shooting some pool or playing darts and generally having fun.  Its like I turned 30+ and all that went away.  Actually I think I turned into someone old and boring.  By 10 pm on a Friday night I want to be in bed or at least home in my fleecy pj's.  You know I remember during my twenties I would come home to visit my parents and I would go out at 10 pm becuase things were just getting started.  I remember my parents saying "you are goin out now? It's so late"  And I was like "Its really early and noone goes out before 10!"  Sadly now I am the one who is saying its 10 and it feels so late, I don't even had kids or a husband/partner to use as an exuse!  I can't even be like Miranda on Sex and the City and watch my tv shows I recorded all week becuase we don't have TIVO or digital recording cable of any kind! 

I shouldn't say its all bad.  Last year when I worked in an office a friend , and sometimes several friends and I would often go out for drinks on a Friday after work.  It was lots of fun.  I think the highlight was one night just her and I (you know who you are : ) went out to Earls, sat in the "lounge" had some drinks and appy's then we stumbled home.  I swore it was like 11 pm and I was so ready for bed.  I got home and looked at the clock 7:30 pm people!  7:30 pm  it was shocking I mean I know we had been drinking since 4:30 and I had apparently reached my limit but I swore it had to be really late, like 11 pm and I felt realy proud of myself when I left the "lounge" thinking oh yeah I can still handle a long night of drinking and socializing...not.  I was so sure I had been out all night but I am sure the alcohol I had consumed coupled with the early and very dark Canadian winter nights helped fuel my desire for it too be much later.  Also my ego could have used a few extra hours as well.  As I really felt like I was returning to my pre-30's where I actually did something exciting and fun after 7 pm!

I don't really know how to change this pattern...sadly I don't know if I even want it to change.  I mean I would like to go out and listen to some live music and hit the pub every once in a while but I don't really have a partner in crime.  I am hoping that will all change when I head to New Orleans with my friends over the Christmas holidays...sorry ladies but if you are reading this we will be enjoying music, beverages and food a plenty during our week in the south!  I need to trip back down memory lane and I need to be reminded that there is more to night life than fuzzy pj's and re-runs!  HAHA until then I will most likely continue my weekend evenings in the same old pattern....which honestly for now is totally fine.

Food For Thought

You moon the wrong person at an office party and suddenly you're not "professional" any more.  

Friendships

Friendship is mutually cooperative and supportive behaviour (Canadian spelling) between two or more people. In this sense, the term connotes a relationship which involves mutual knowledge, esteem, affection, and respect along with a degree of rendering service to friends in times of need or crisis (Courtesy of Wikipedia).

I have to admit that I am a fan of Sex and the City. Why? Well because I think we all see part of ourselves and our friends in the characters. Maybe we all have a Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte and Samantha inside of us. Maybe our own friends are a mixture of these fictional characters. I think people enjoy the characters because while it doesn’t portray reality for many of us such as exciting club grand openings, fashion week and rich and famous life styles, the life experiences and explorations of the characters and friendships are relatable, they make us laugh, cry and think. Through it all the underlying message to me are the friendships. The characters always remain friends though they do not always agree with each other or life choices and many a time one of them had to ask and answer themselves tough questions when disagreeing with a friend’s life choice or opinion. I know that some of the episodes seemed way out but are they really?

We have all judged ourselves and our friends harshly... and realized we were wrong about both. I feel very fortunate to have friends in my life and not just a few but several both men and women. In the immortal words of John Lennon “I get by with a little help from my friends”. Yes cheesy as it may be I often wonder how many personal crises I would have survived without my friends. Some of these only reached crisis level because I made them...in my head. I think a lot of us take our friendships for granted not on purpose but just because that’s part of life.

I never really stopped to think about how many or how important my friends and friendships were until I spent my first summer in the arctic where we got mail once a month for three months. I got tons of mail including packages of good eats and my favourite things, packages with funny activities and most importantly news of their lives. I realized I missed hearing about my friends lives not them hearing about mine and that no matter where I was – like the middle of nowhere they were still there for me just like I was there for them.

Over the years I have learned that friends are the people you can call anytime, day or night happy or sad and they will be there for you, offering support, in many cases making you laugh and seeing the reality of your situation...whatever it may be. Friends make you feel warm and fuzzy. They let you spout off personal opinions especially the uncensored ones...and they still like you. I know shocking. I am often surprised that I have managed to maintain friends over the years despite my fierce opinions and inability to censor my thoughts and speech. I would like to think that I have given as much to my friends as my friends have given me. I consider them my family and though I am not always the best at calling, visiting, sending emails or letters but that when I do time seems to have stood still and our friendship is as strong as ever despite whatever has changed in our lives, marriage, kids, breakups, breakdowns, career advancement and unemployment.

Didn’t your mum tell you “you’re stuck with family, but you can choose your friends”. Parents, siblings and children love you no matter what just like you love them no matter how much they piss you off or frustrate you. Friends, well they don’t have to even care about you, but they do despite being different, having their own opinions, experiences and knowing your deepest darkest and most embarrassing secrets. Of course we know theirs too but I think friends ignore blackmail material... I hope mine do.

Do we chose our friends or do they choose us? I am not sure I just know that without friends life would be pretty dam boring and unfulfilling. I for one am incredibly grateful for my friends.... I mean who can give that look to when a man in a really bad toupee walks by? Your friend because they know what you are thinking without exchanging words...and they don’t care that you are laughing your ass off in public because they are too. I mean life is hard enough and trying it figure it out alone would be pretty unbearable don’t you think? I leave you with a quote it may be cheesy but I think it is applicable to life...mine at least. And a big thank you to all my friends some of which I hope read this post and know I value what they have brought to my life, sensibility, love and laughter!

Food for Thought

“The quest stands upon the edge of a knife. Stray but a little and it will fail. But hope remains, if friends stay true.” J.R. Tolken Lord of the Rings