The Strange Irregularity of Time

Time is a funny thing. Sometimes, it goes so quickly that it's impossible to hold onto as much as a single minute before it's gone.

Then there are times when it slows down so much, it stops.

Today was one of those slow times. It seems that in the recruiting world, the holidays are already here. No one is answering their phone. No one is answering emails. Half the staff of our office have already left until after Christmas.

The other half of us are here through tomorrow morning and then we, too, can leave.

It hasn't been a bad day. It's just been very, very quiet. I tried to work but when you're leaving messages and sending emails into a great empty universe, it makes it a little hard.

Ironically, in contrast, the time away from work is passing at a record speed. Fortunately, my 'to do' list for the holidays has been whittled down to merely needing to pack to spend a week at my parent's and load up the car. I've shopped and wrapped and watched almost all of the Christmas movies I love to watch.

The exception is "Love Actually" which I plan on watching shortly with a glass of Baileys, two puppies on my lap and with the glow of the Christmas lights in the background. It's almost time to stop preparing for Christmas and actually letting it be Christmas.

I'll be sad. I've enjoyed the parties and holiday gatherings this year. Last night, we had the gathering at my bosses house. The chicken Wellington turned out rather well although it's not something I'd probably ever make nor order from a restaurant. It's just not my type of thing. I think it's a childhood thing. When I was a non-foodie, an extremely finicky child, I much preferred 'teas' to dinners. This meant I'd rather have toast or a sandwich than a real meal. I never liked casseroles or other 'gravy' type of dinners. I only like simple, plain things that weren't 'messed around.'

Most of that has changed with age. With my love of cooking and food, a sense of adventure also arrived so I'll eat almost anything. However, as a rule, I still don't really like casseroles and things very much. While it didn't resemble a casserole at all, Chicken Wellington is one of those meals that as a child, I wouldn't have touched because it was heavy and 'fussed around.'

As a grown-up, I ate it. It tasted good. It just wasn't something that really...suits me and the type of food I like to eat.

Still, it was nice to learn that my boss is a very good cook. Also, he has an amazing house. It's one of those catalog-homes you see where it's beautifully decorated and every single thing in the house belongs where it is. There's no clutter. The kitchen...well, let's just say if I were the type of person to covet (which I'd like to think I'm not), I'd covet that kitchen. Also, he had a real Le Creuset dutch oven. I have a lovely dutch oven of my own- a Mario Batali. However, there's still a part of me that sees the Le Creusets and tilts my head with an "ooooh."

You'll be pleased to hear I did not steal my bosses Le Creuset dutch oven. Also, when he showed me the rest of his Le Creuset cookware in response to my compliments on his cookware (yes- I'm a huge cooking geek), I also did not steal those.

It was nice to get a taste of where he lived. It's a very nice house. It makes my homey little house seem very...homey. When I look at a home like that, I wonder if it's the type of place I'd really like to live. After all, I tend to like just a wee bit of clutter but not enough to make a mess. I also have a lot of things that don't belong in a place like that- my Harry Potter collectibles, in fact. In a house like that, collectibles are relegated to the attic or a basement room where visitors won't see it.

The whole evening was nice. As expected, my coworkers got a little sloshed. We exchanged Secret Santa gifts (I got a $20 gift card for Barnes and Noble- yay!) and we ate far too much. It was very nice holiday party.

Of course, when we got to work this morning, half the staff was dragging a little from the night before which didn't help with the overly quiet atmosphere.

Still, it made for some fun teasing which sped time up for a little while.

Tomorrow is my last day at work for over a week. We're only going to be in the office for about three and a half hours.

I have a feeling they may be the longest three and a half hours in the world.

Happy Thursday!

The Fickleness of Time

It's only Tuesday. This week already feels long and we're not even over the midpoint yet. I'm not sure how that happens. Time should be a measured thing. It should be something that's consistent and whole. It is, technically, the same amount of time and yet...don't you think time moves faster sometimes than at others?

I find that it moves faster on, say, Saturdays and Sundays than it does on Mondays and even Tuesdays. Perhaps we all have our own personal time conversion systems. For example, an hour on a Saturday is the equivalent of, say, four hours on a Monday. Thus, within two hours on a Saturday, I've passed an entire Monday.

Everyone's different but I do guarantee that everyone's time conversion system works in a similar fashion: The time on a weekend is less than or equal to that of a workday.

This system explains so much. It explains how we can reach noon on a Saturday and feel relaxed and laughing. We can glance at the clock and be shocked that it's already noon. We can check our internal calendars and say, "Wow, really? I can't believe time went by so fast!"

Yet, you take the equivalent on a Monday and by noon, we feel exhausted, beaten and ready to put our heads in the sand. Time doesn't move fast..it slows to a snail's pace. We start looking forward to the elusive weekend. Friday never seems that far but, yet, it's still days away.

I've said all along that the time on a weekend flies far quicker than it does on a weekend. Technically, logically, it's the same time. And...yet...if you're stuck doing something you don't want to be doing vs. that of something you do want to be doing...time moves at whatever pace it wants to.

Still, time could stand still. I note that time only stands still for really happy occasions or, more common, unhappy ones. Time freezes on our memories like a photo whether it's for a good memory or a bad memory.

In my case, I tend to rely more on memories than I do on photos. I have friends who are all about cameras and photography. I admire them this hobby. I also benefit from it as I get prints from their experiences. Yet, for me, my memories are not etched into the printout from an HP Laser Jet printer or from the photo booth at Target- they're etched in my mind. I love to have photos of my family on my desk or in my home yet, really, I rarely look at the photos. Instead, I close my eyes and recall the interactions and memories I share with them.

Thus, the really impressive moments in life are frozen in my memory. The really bad ones are too. Time freezes for these moments. They remain forever stuck in your mind. Songs, smells and tastes bring those moments back to you. No matter where you are and what you're doing, sometimes all it takes is to hear a certain song on the radio and suddenly time is frozen again. No matter how much time has passed, no matter what memory it was, it's there...there's no denying its attempt to recapture that moment of your life.

Clearly, I'm feeling reflective this week. I think with the changing of the seasons, that's a natural response. Time's measure remains the same but our measure of it remains influid...untrackable. While I long for the scent of autumn leaves, we're currently still stuck in summer's hold. The humidity builds, the heat remains and the leaves on the trees remain frozen, as though their own sense of time is no longer reliable.

Still, tomorrow is the midpoint of the week. The weekend is not far beyond. As my young cousin reminded me, we shouldn't wish time to pass but we should hold onto it as best we can.

And yet, it seems much harder to remember that on workdays, doesn't it? The weekend is so much easier to capture.

Happy Wednesday!