Do I Really Have to Go Back to Work?

Am I the only one struggling to get back in the swing of things?  I’ve been on vacation since December 20, and we’ve cooked, entertained, seen a play and a movie and mostly hung out on the home front. I’ve spent lots of time on the couch reading, with the wood burning stove going in the corner.  On New Year’s Day, we went for a bicycle ride and then took down all the Christmas decorations.  That exertion called for a nap and more time reading on the couch while my husband watched football.

Today is my first day back at work after ten days off. I feel as though my brain is operating in slow motion, and I just want to take a nap.  Of course, since I’ve taken a nap almost every day while I’ve been off, that's understandable. Fortunately, I have no meetings today or tomorrow, and then, thankfully, the weekend will be here.  I guess I’d be coherent if I had a conference call this week, but I’d prefer not to test that theory.

Perhaps by Monday, my brain will be fully functioning again. As is usually the case, I worked exceptionally hard the week before vacation to get my ducks in a row and be sure I’d be prepared for the New Year.  I’m spending these first two days reviewing and tweaking documents to discuss in next week’s meetings and handling simple tasks like scheduling ongoing meetings for 2014.  I’ll also complete my yearend review so that I can send it off to my manager.  That task is good preparation for planning my team’s assignments for 2014.

Slowly, slowly, my brain is coming back to life, though I’m still falling prey to the blind stares.  You know about those, right? That’s when you’re sitting at the computer and suddenly realize you’ve read the same paragraph over and over without taking it in.  It could be time for a lunch break.

Next up may be cleaning out my email box, archiving online files and organizing new ones to start fresh.  With all three of my bosses off these two days, I can attend to the kinds of things that always get pushed aside when more urgent and energizing requests come in.  I expect to be ready to energetically dive in come Monday.

Meanwhile, is it 5 pm yet?