The last few weeks of my life have been nothing short of insane! I just got a new job at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and, unbeknownst to me, learned that I would be working full time during my orientation period of 4 weeks. Yeah, that's great; I'll make money. But it just so happens that these last two weeks have been finals week. That deadly combination made for an interesting experience and threw me into what I so dreadfully call "survival mode." No, I'm not talking about being stranded on a desert island with a match, compass, and canteen, kind of survival mode. I'm talking about making it to the end of the semester with out a) pulling all my hair out, b) quitting school, c) failing school, d) killing someone (accidentally or on purpose), and e) living to tell about it. These last two weeks were an interesting test of character. Its interesting what takes a priority and what doesn't when time is of the essence. My days were planned out to the very minute (wake up at 6:00. School until 3. Work until 11.) I hate that. I hate being so fixed in my time. No spontaneity. No fun.
Ever wondered what life in survival mode is like Philly style? We'll I'll tell you...
1. Laundry. Its been weeks since I pulled my clean laundry, folded out of a drawer. It goes from hamper, to pile on the floor, to washer/dryer, and back into the hamper (clean) where I pull it out each morning. Once the hamper is empty I gather up the clothes off the floor and wash them (usually at midnight because I realize I have no clean underwear for the next day) and the cycle repeats. Pathetic, I know. But for some reason the 10-15 minutes it would take to fold all that laundry and put it away just seems like too much of a sacrifice for a brain in the time crunch of survival mode. So if you're pulling your clothes off a hanger or out of a drawer your not doing too bad in life!
2. Food, yet another thing to take a hit since survival mode set in. Survival mode food=quick food (and most times that is not the most healthy). There is just something wrong about eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner out of your backpack. I've had many days where I've questioned the integrity of said food; I've learned that 8 hours in a room temperature backpack is not the best environment for yogurt or even string cheese (I now eat those at the beginning of the day). The last time I really went to the grocery store was the weekend after Thanksgiving (yes, really) and while there I bought myself some spinach. I love spinach, especially in salads, so I thought this would be perfect. Well 3 weeks later that spinach tub is still in my fridge UNOPENED, I haven't even taken the plastic off of it. Don't ask me why, but the idea of taking spinach leaves from one big tub and transferring them into a little, backpack-friendly tub with a side of dressing seemed all too complicated for this finals-focused brain. And obviously if I haven't gone shopping for 3 weeks I don't have that much food to stock my backpack with, this is where one of my favorite Philly things comes in...the Chinese carts. Maybe you've all seen them in other cities, but they are just these mini kitchens in a portable trailer. There are tons of them out on the sidewalk right outside the library. You can get a myriad of creations (a new one everyday) for$3-$5, and they are delicious! So lets just say the little Chinese cart man knows me by name now :)
3. Sleep. The longer you live in survival mode, the more you convince yourself you can live on less and less sleep. It starts out with a few late nights and an average sleep time of about 6 hours. Then as the tasks to complete increase and the time available to complete them decreases your brain begins to feel okay about 5 hours of sleep, and then 4 hours of sleep. Before you know it a week has gone by and you've averaged 28 hours of sleep--for the entire week. There is a frontal lobe headache associated with such a sleeping pattern, not to mention decreased cognition, and an inability to remember what the heck you did with your keys.
And that is only the beginning...
However, I'm happy to say that I am transitioning out of survival mode and am getting ready to fold my laundry right now!
