Misery Loves Company

Long weekends don't mean a lot when you are a grad student. Especially a grad student with such a sporadic schedule as mine. When I have experiments going, I'm in the lab 7 days a week, usually for anywhere between 8-14 hours a day. I usually forget to eat until about 4 pm, when Shalu and I both nearly pass out from hunger. When I'm in a writing phase, I will usually work everyday, late into the night, drinking copious amounts of coffee/tea/diet Pepsi, and then sleep in 'til noon. And repeat, with each night getting progressively later until I end up working 'til 7 am and sleeping 'til 3 in the afternoon. Or maybe I'll take a week and just goof off. I often lose track of what day of the week it is, since days melt into nights, weekdays melt into weekends - it's all the same to me.

And as much as I love what I do and the flexibility that my career (sometimes) affords me, when I hear people who have regular jobs, with regular schedules talk about their plans for the long weekend and realize that they can actually enjoy their "free time" without the nagging voice in the back of their mind saying "you should be working right now!", I feel a pang of jealousy*.

This long weekend will be filled with more working on the thesis (of "Thesis Writing is Hell" fame), punctuated by packing to move. All of which will take place inside my dank basement apartment. The apartment I've spent so much time in working on the damn hell thesis lately that I think I'll go mad**.

So, since I'm in a bitter and angry place right now, I was pleased to see this weekend's forecast:

It's been gorgeously sunny and warm for about a week, but in typical Vancouver fashion, it will raining throughout the entire long weekend. Except on Sunday, when apparently the weather will be Not Applicable***. Enjoy your long weekend, Vancouver! ****

On a completely unrelated topic:

As per Dave's request, I'm posting a link to the funniest video EVER! Calgary Flames. Singing. Seriously. Watch this video and tell me that anyone who is a Flames fan isn't a complete freak. You can't touch a flame when it's red hot!

*when I hear about how people actually get paid a living wage (or more) for their work, I experience another pang of jealousy. But that's a whole other issue.

**thank god for the friends who have invited me out for dinner lately, giving me an excuse to get out of this place once in a while! I owe them my sanity (such as it is).

***WTF?

***I know. That is mean and spiteful and I'm going to hell. Please send me beer, as it will be hot there. I hear that beer is an acquired taste, like red wine.