Day 850: Friday 2, the Revenge of Friday

So… life in Pakistan is pretty interesting… and very busy.  I’m pretty much working all the time.  I average around 60 to 80 hours a week… depending on the week.  The schedule can get pretty daunting… especially since you have to maintain the pace for, pretty much, a year straight.  It’s exhausting at times. 

The first week of a schedule like this isn’t too bad… it’s pretty easy.  Back when I worked for Cobb County a week like this was common when we had a big event… but it certainly wasn’t the norm.

However, as the weeks press on… a schedule like this gets a little harder and harder… but once you’ve been doing it for a month or a month and a half, you just don’t care anymore.  I’ve been doing it for almost four months now, but I feel good though… a little loopy at times, but good.

Now, I have two coping mechanisms to deal with the loopiness and simply being able to keep this kind of schedule long term.

1) One day off per week:  I’m pretty militant about this.  I need one day a week to decompress and just not get caught up in work.  So, Sundays is my day… unless there is a holiday during the week, I will normally observe the holiday and work the preceding Sunday, but you get the idea.  My days off float and can be random at times… but I need JP time.

2) Making fun of the situation:  As American’s we seem to be bread with the notion that Friday’s are awesome… it’s the end of the week… it’s a day that must be celebrated.  ‘It’s Friday!  Everyone has to be in a good mood on Friday!’  And even in a situation where we work 6 to 7 days a week… people can’t seem to reprogram their love and reverence for Friday.  Salutations of ‘TFIG’ abound on Friday… yet, we’re all working side by side about on Saturday.  So… when you don’t really have a weekend… what is Friday?  What does it all mean?  Well, no one seems to care… its Friday and Fridays are awesome.  So, if I can’t change everyone’s perspective of Fridays, I’ve decided to rebrand Saturdays…  In my little SchutzHappens world, a Saturday will now be called, ‘Friday 2, the Revenge of Friday.’  That’s right… if I am forced to celebrate the wonders of Friday only to wake up the next day and work all over again… I’m going to give it a horrifying name.  Boo!

I think it’s going to catch on!