Here I am awake at 5AM on this Saturday morning. Unlike the past 4 weeks, I did not screech into normal person schedule after work last night. Instead, I went about business as usual. I hung out a bit after work, went to sleep when I was tired, and woke up when I felt rested (aka overslept my alarm). Unfortunately, that was at noon and 9PM, respectively.
5AM is an exciting hour during weekdays. Morning Edition goes live then, and it’s a little bit of a sprint to the finish. But today, 5AM is desolate and silent. There is no good TV on and even the internet is a sleepy place — been there, read that.
I could do productive things, like pick up my room, check off some writing to-do’s, or finish I Capture The Castle, but… I won’t put too much pressure on myself.
Here’s to hoping daylight comes and with it, sleepiness. Happy weekend.
I woke up this morning at 5:30 following a 13-hour coma. It’s 7PM on a Saturday night, and I can barely keep my eyes open. I’m irritated by the bass pounding through the floor of the apartment above me. I’m watching The Jane Austen Book Club.
I was under no illusion that working the night shift would be easy when I started. But three weeks later, I didn’t know it would be so hard.
The best part of it is the work. Once I’m at my desk, I’m content. I feel valuable. And I learn. But when the night is over, I feel like I’m coming home to nothingness. I fill the time I’m awake with reading, writing, listening to music, or watching movies. I even started running. In the end, though, there’s not enough to conceal the fact that I’m living in an entire different universe from my friends and family.
It’s 9:15AM. While the rest of you are heading to work or at work already, my weekend has already begun. I’m in my PJs, watching a movie, and drinking a glass of red wine. It’s a small pleasure of my new schedule.
I’m only two weeks in, but it’s really hard to believe there are months more to go. Don’t get me wrong — I like the work, and it was surprisingly easy to transition to sleeping during the day. But the schedule is a bit devastating for relationships of all kinds. I do well alone. I like my “me” time. I have hobbies and interests that I’m happy to pursue in my free time. But when this — movies, books, music, podcasts – is all I have, it becomes isolating.
When I was adjusting to life in London, I felt the same way. I distinctly remember grabbing onto a quote I read from Into the Wild. “Happiness is only real when shared.” It rang true for me then, and it rings true for me now.
There’s still plenty of adjusting to do. I haven’t mastered the perfect schedule of wakefulness/sleep, but I’m hoping I’ll get there.
I leave you with my favorite track of the moment: “You” by Gold Panda. Happy Friday.
Please excuse my absence, Gitnerblog loyalists. These past month or two have rendered me busier than ever, with marathon-length work weeks and stacked assignments. Highlights of the month so far include my interview with musician/hero Kaki King (photo below) for Autostraddle and my latest for NPR, a write-up on Ratatat’s LP4for our First Listen series.
One year ago, I was graduating with no job prospects and had just barely secured a summer internship with Sirius XM. Honestly, I felt like a failure — that all I’d worked for and come to expect after taking this certain path was imaginary.
Today, I’m happy and relieved to say that, so far, things have worked out. There were some bumps along the way, times I doubted what I was doing would pay off — living in a 1-bedroom apartment with 3 people, not having health insurance, eating meager dinners of canned tuna with rice, for example. But here I am, doing job(s) I genuinely enjoy and living in a neighborhood I love. I didn’t do it alone. (Does anyone?) But I did work like a damn dog (and still do) to make it happen.
2010 seems to be a kinder year for new graduates but if anyone’s having trouble, I have this advice. Work hard and stick it out. Find something, whether it be retail or restaurants or coffee shops, to weather the storm. And lastly, aim to do what you love because anything else will make you miserable. That’s a pearl of wisdom from this 22-year-old.
To close the post, here is me with Kaki King. Just because it happened.
I lied. Due to lack of reliable internet at my temporary apartment and a fourth part-time job thrown in the mix, my online presence has slacked off.
On the bright side, I’m moving in with two IT professionals on October 1. If I have a computer problem, be confident that it will be resolved within 24 hours.
I learned last week that I cannot work hard, play hard. I can work hard, rest for a night, do some laundry, and then can play relatively hard.
I’m getting into the groove of working three jobs, but sadly my blogging has suffered. Big things are in store for the blog though, including a move to WordPress and a new domain! Get ready.
In the meantime, look for a Friday night blog entry.
My latest production - a piece on @Garbage's new album. Loved talking w/ 2 kickass women, Jancee Dunn & Shirley Manson: http://t.co/tST1TOgb6 hours ago
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