Pacing Myself Through The Endless Busyness

I cannot remember the last time I was this busy. I mean, a lot of this is stuff I’ve chosen to do and could technically choose to not do, but I’ve made commitments to myself and other people already and I always follow through on my commitments when possible. Work’s been constantly lately. All the chances for breaks and letting my mind rest are done except for the time it takes for software updates to do their job. That’s the only time during my work day when I can let my mind wander and it’s generally not enough time to do much of anything other than have a stray thought or check my discord notifications. After work, I’ve got errands or chores (especially now that I hit the point where I can’t keep putting things off), some kind of plans usually, and then the endless work of trying to get things up and running in my new Final Fantasy 14 FC so that I can eventually take a break, which it’s own set of almost endless tasks that just need a little time and attention when I can spare them now that all the urgent stuff is done. Plus, of course, my crafting workshops, my desire to play other video games, two episodes of The Sopranos to watch, various podcasts, and whatever other entertainment options I’m forgetting since my time away from work is currently focused on whatever plans I’ve made, recording wrestling shows every week, doing stuff for the FC, and then doing stuff so I don’t wind up hating Final Fantasy 14 because all I do in it is work (which currently means jostling my priority order a bit every day so I can do some of the “fun” work rather than just whatever is most important and/or urgent).

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Mask Time

Reggie twiddled his thumbs, looking around Georgine’s office. She kept things tidy, so there wasn’t much to look at other than the dark computer, a calendar with nothing written on it, and the small notepad she was usually holding.

Uncertain how long he’d be waiting, Reggie leaned forward to see what Georgine had been looking at before a lab tech had asked her to come look at something downstairs.

Upside down and refusing to do more than lean forward, it took him a while to work it out. It was just a to-do list full of notes about phone calls, meeting times, reminders, and a section of rote daily tasks. Just as he was finishing his scan, Georgine’s office door slid open and Reggie glanced up at his manager as she stepped into her office.

“Glad you find my to-do list so engaging.” Georgine arched an immaculate eyebrow at him.

Reggie’s face heated as Georgine walked around to her chair. “Sorry. I was bored.”

“Thank you for waiting.” Georgine flashed him a small, polite smile. “Any questions before we begin?”

“Yeah, what does ‘mask time’ mean?”

Georgine looked down at her to-do list. “It’s a reminder. A mask you heat up and place over your eyes to keep the ducts clean. I use it every night so my eyes don’t get irritated by the dry air in the lab.”

Reggie nodded and launched into the presentation he was supposed to be making. Georgine, attention fixed on him, picked up her notebook, flipped to a new page to take notes, and used the motion to press on the drawer that held her disguise to make sure it hadn’t been disturbed. It would be disastrous if anyone realized that she’d used the company’s prototypes to take down that annoying hero last month.