Just Hanging Out

Hi! Katie here! Just "hanging out" and watching What Not to Wear. This show is so good, and I feel like I've picked up a lot of tips that I can use for myself, as well as to give advice to others. As promised, I took a picture of my new pink dress pants when I wore them to work for the first time. I got a ton of compliments and am going to have fun trying to figure out what to pair with them! I learned that I need to take better selfies, because you can't see my shoes in this pic! Also, my clothes aren't styled as well as I would like them to be. Things to work on! Next topic!

Button Down: Rando department store, Cardigan: Express, Pink Dress Pants: Express

 

So, the main point of this post is to expand on a realization that I had a few days ago. I think I've posted before about how I barely hang out with my friends anymore, and I've finally figured out why. 

Do your parents ever just "hang out" with their buddies at each others' houses a few times a week? My guess is probably not. It's because they have jobs, families, responsibilities, and are no doubt exhausted. I have spent the past few months agonizing over the thoughts of "I hope my friends don't hate me...I hope they don't think I'm avoiding them..." After a conversation about it with a smart person who helps me figure out what I'm thinking (my boyfriend), I realized that I've become an adult, like my parents, and it's inevitable.

We're out of college, where time spent living with our friends, a literal unending hangout, is now spent apart. We have jobs, many of us 30 or more hours per week. Now lets see what else I want to fit in to my work week: exercise (ha), applying to grad school or other jobs, shopping, errands, and most importantly sleep. I don't know about you, but when I get home from work, I'm beat. I can't wait to be able to sleep in the next morning, and I often just want to get to bed, even if it happens to be 4 pm. If I end up not fitting these things in to my work week, they flow over to the weekend (every other of which is spent at work, on my part). 

Adult life is spent working, then alone, perhaps with family or a loved one after hours. There are always exceptions to the rule (it sure seems like a rule at this point), but I'd say the norm is usually as previously stated. The only time my mom "hangs out" with her friends is when she goes on an annual weekend trip to Put-In-Bay (20+ years!), and maybe if someone is having a party of sorts. My dad sees his friends maybe once or twice a year. Simple observations.

I know that I am nowhere near having a family, or having to run a household (thank you mommy and daddy), but I do know that I'm in the mindset where just "hanging out" on a day off seems like I could be using my time better, and frankly, I'm not usually in the mood to "hang out", for some reason. Every now and then, I'll feel like I want to go shopping, or go to a bar or an event. That's maybe two or three times a month. I'd like to try to do these things, but again, schedules vary, interests vary, and over all, it's kind of a pain. Who thought hanging out with friends would be hard?! When I think of adults hanging out, my mind goes to TV shows like The Newsroom, in which most of the time people go out with their co-workers to a bar after a long and often trying day of work. Aside from Friends, I can't think of shows where adults just sit around at each others' houses, shooting the breeze.

I'm not saying that I don't want to hang out. And I'm not saying that I'm not willing to try. I'm just at a realization that growing up means not seeing your friends as often, and taking a whole lot of me time. I'm also thankful that many of my friends have come to this, kind of sad, realization. But I know we'll get through it. I mean, we did complete IS together.

Moral of the story: I still enjoy going out with friends, mostly at night. Let's go dancing, to a jazz club, go on a day/weekend trip, out for drinks, to the movies, or to a baseball game. I know much of it costs money, but it's not expensive. Plus, jobs!