Keeping Up with...

On Saturday night I went out with a bunch of co-workers for an after work drink. I have never been the girl who could stay out late and party. The latest I ever stayed out was until 5am when Andy and I first started dating and couldn't get enough of each other. We'd make up excuses to stay out and up and just hang out.

Now it's a fight to stay out late since my days are packed with way more than work and my love of getting in harder workouts usually requires 8 or 9 hours of sleep. So I was super proud of myself for having 2 pints of McMenamin's hard cider and staying out til 10:30 with tech and daylight savings time looming the next day. I had a great time with my friends and left them feeling like I might actually get to be "that girl" for once.

Everyone knows "that girl". She comes in the next day to work and has great camaraderie with her fellow co-workers over their drink sharing, crazy conversations and strange happenings. I've always wanted to be her because she seems so much more carefree than I have ever been and has an inside joke with everyone built over lowered inhibitions.

I was surprised when I learned the next day that so much more happened after I left. And while I was happy for my friends to have their fun experiences, I felt so far outside of the circle. They have yet another crazy story to share between them, while what I have is the feeling like I'm a 25 year old with 50 year old sensibilities. Even my 40 year old boyfriend has stories of crazy nights at the bar when I usually chose to forgo those nights in favor of studying or spending time with one friend at my house over a bottle of wine instead of ten at the local pub and pitchers of beer.

I know that I prefer the quiet life at home with Andy or one-on-one with my best friends to large groups of people who I have to make small talk with. I prefer talking about deeper subjects to the superficial. I prefer swapping stories about travel and good books read and politics to swapping stories about other crazy nights past.

I know that I am most comfortable with a good night's sleep and a feeling of accomplishment with a new financial concept studied or time spent with my honey, who is, literally, my favorite person on the planet.

(I know, I know, we're not married, but close enough, right?)

And it's true I did close down Palomino on the night of the opening night party for Oklahoma. Maybe between that and my tattoo I am more like "that girl" than I give myself credit for.