Work/Life Balance

I've always been a hard worker and don't like to see projects incomplete or a to-do list with empty check boxes (my signature to-do list style). But over the past year I've been busier and busier at work and have started to accomodate my expectations of myself. I don't want to say I've lowered them b/c I'm certainly working as hard as ever but I've come to accept what's realistic in a given work day, even if I'm there for 10 or more hours.

Last week, LIVESTRONG hosted a recognition dinner for those of us who have been there for 5 or more years. It was such a nice event with tons of personal touches and kind words. It was nice to be honored and even nicer to be reminded that I, too, feel honored to work there.

But I still want to make sure that work isn't my life.

One thing that's helped with that in the past month is that I'm dating someone and pretty excited about it. I got his permission to out him on my blog but since my parents and co-workers read this, it'll keep it pretty tame.

Suffice it to say that Carl has certainly given me even more reasons to not let work become my life. Sadly, I think that it's easy when you're single to put yourself aside for work and/or be asked to do so. It's not something I'm proud to admit but I also know I may have been given some of the chances I have/had at work b/c I don't have some of the time constraints others do. But that doesn't mean I want that pattern to stay that way.

Carl is such a balanced person that it's infectious to want to follow those same habits. And, of course, when you first meet someone you want to spend a lot of time with him. Luckily, for me, he feels the same way.

So I think many people are grateful that Carl came into my life but most of all, I am.

On a less sappy note, I'm on day 16 of my 21 day food challenge. It's been amazing! While I miss wine the most I've gotten past my sugar cravings and have really enjoyed experimenting with new foods. My sleep has improved and overall I feel great all day long. So while I'm sure I'll make some changes when Day 22 roles around, for now I'm pretty happy with the results!