First of all, I'd like to wish everyone a happy new year; holy crap it's already 2010. Where did the 2000s go all of a sudden? Regardless, it's a new decade and for most people, the end of Christmas break, holiday break, winter break or whatever break you'd like to call it. Being PC is okay every now and then and has its place, but uggh, some people throw a big fit about the terminology/coinage of the term Christmas Break. To be honest, relax and be cool because it's a break after all.
That was the time when I would count the days awaiting that one and a half week to two week break of doing absolutely nothing. I got to be a lazy ass, sleep in, get some kick ass toys or video games from my family for Christmas, and spend those lazy days playing. It was a grand time of my childhood, there was no school, no urgent commitments, just me enjoying my time as a kid.
Back then, it was a time to recharge and refresh oneself for the new year ahead as well as the next semester of school. In our busy lives we sometimes hope for a mental health day to just let loose and de-stress after long, chaotic and anxiety-ridden days. When I was in college, the week and a half off were invaluable to me simply for the matter that school life in college left me confused and out of place. Spending some quality time at home with family during Christmas break allowed me to analyze where I was in life and get myself back on track for the next year/semester...Alright I lied, that what I should have done. What did I actually do? Hmm, as far as I can remember, I spent most of the time catching up on the sleep that I didn't get and ate to my heart's content while doing absolutely nothing productive for myself.
I really wonder how many days I have wasted during the years over Christmas Break doing absolutely nothing. Alright. Taking into consideration that I was most likely conscious and aware of Christmas break since probably first grade up until now (age 22). I was 6 years old at the time. Preschool and kindergarten are a complete blur to me now (aside from some random show-and-tell days). I guess you can blame it on alcohol for that. Alright, so basically for around 16 years of Christmas Breaks and then considering that on average Christmas Break is roughly 12 days give or take; so I've been unproductive for 192 days of my life. That doesn't sound too bad since it's only a little more than half of a single calendar year, but that's strictly for Christmas Break only. Think of how many more days I've wasted on summer vacation, spring break, sometimes mid-winter break, Thanksgiving break, etc.
Aside from that half digression, half panic attack, what I'm trying to say is that because I'm working a normal/hourly job now, there's absolutely no more time for Christmas Break. You simply won't have one unless you take some vacation days, but those will most likely be unpaid. The revelation kind of hit me like a rock when I had some friends contact me prior to and during their Christmas Breaks (some of them are still in school or have a pseudo-Christmas Break schedule). It'll go something like this:
"Hey man, I got a couple days off for Christmas Break, we should definitely hang out and drink sometime then.."
or
"Yay, I'm finally done with exams, did you want to go drink or something sometime?"
or
"You should come down, hang out and drink, it's New Years Eve after all..."
Honestly, instances like these make it painfully true to me that I no longer have any free time during a so-called Christmas Break to have fun (or drink for that matter). It pains me every time when I have to give my friends the reality check that my free time runs sparingly nowadays. All work and no play makes me a very dull boy...er...man...err whatever...a dull 22 year old then. My current job had me working several hours on Christmas eve too so I technically only had Christmas day and the weekend off. It was a three day weekend so I couldn't complain, but I wouldn't mind having an extra week or two off in addition to that. Some say that I'm lucky enough to even work on Christmas Eve because of the god awful economy right now, but in retrospect, you would like to have Christmas Eve off as well.
A visual of how my December was. I can say it was very 'work friendly'. Harhar. Damn I really need to get away from making shitty puns.
Despite not having a true Christmas Break this year, I could always return to school to pursue some kind of masters degree or something along those lines; then I would have a Christmas Break again. However, exercising that possibility is absolutely foolish for me since I honestly would rather do without more school. I've already spent 17-18 years of my life in school; it's about time to live my life for a change instead of reading about others' lives or something along those lines (that's quite sad I'm interpreting education as that).
It sounds like I'm repeating myself over and over in these Old Fart posts, but a sad reality for those entering the horrible truth of getting older. Be prepared for your lack of Christmas Break. You've been warned.
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