It's 1:11 pm on a Friday Afternoon: Where are your Priorities?

It's 1:11 pm on a Friday afternoon and I am thinking to myself, "what does this time mean to me"? Well, I am here to admit to anyone who is out there listening, that it doesn't mean a darn thing to me as I am sitting at one of those major crossroads and cannot seem to make up my mind which direction to go.

1:11 pm on a Friday afternoon has meant different things throughout my life. I would just be making up what I was thinking or feeling during my elementary and high school years, but I definitely remember my thoughts during the college years. Classes for the week were over! I just finished lunch and was ready to party and relax and enjoy another fantastic weekend. There was a simplistic belief that I could let go all serious thought at least for a few hours. Whether I was hanging out with friends, drinking a beer, packing to go somewhere for the weekend or cleaning up my room, there was not a care in the world.

During my 20's, Friday afternoons meant cleaning up loose ends at the workplace. Making final calls and setting up appointments for the following week. Happy hours plans took precedence during the afternoon hours on a Friday. My mood was light but not totally relaxed. I was usually anxious to catch up with my husband and ready for weekend exercise and other social activities that had been neglected during the week.

The 30's were all about the kids. Fridays were hectic. Tying up loose ends at work, trying to get out of there in time to pay the babysitter and get the kids to their planned activities. Traffic on Fridays was always a pain in the neck. Starting around 1:11 pm, I would start calling and setting up play dates, and getting details on the weekend's soccer and baseball tournaments. I was divorced for most of my 30's, so on weekends the kids were with their Dad, I needed to also make plans for myself. It was usually around 1:11 pm on Friday that I remembered that I did not have a single thing planned for myself!

My 40's were the most crazy of all the decades to date. I had moved up and broken the glass ceiling at work. This was great for my pocketbook and my career but wrecked havoc with my family life and my dating and my eventual married life. All three kids were very busy with school and sports activities. I was doing tons of volunteer work, too. Not a minute could be wasted. Friday afternoons were no different than Monday afternoons, as I was often working six days a week. I was on the nonstop treadmill of life!

I'm now one year into my 50's and all three of my children are either in college or have recently graduated and no one is living at home. My plan was to settle into a nice relaxing lifestyle, doing a little volunteer work for charity, taking care of my husband, house and golden retriever and start a social blog that would eventually develop into a nice business venture. My Fridays were supposed to be almost back to the feelings I had during college, but that apparently is not what's meant to be.

With the economic circumstances surrounding Bill's work, I need to be able to contribute to our budget with a full-time career again. And yet, the resume sits there unfinished next to my computer. I need to get prepared to interview and sell myself and then get ready to jump back into some sort of work routine again.

I know once I get focused I can do this and I have a strong work ethic, so once I'm in the door, I'll enjoy the work set out for me. But for now, this Friday afternoon, I sit and pray for guidance and direction for this 51-year old empty nest Mom .

Yet, all I am craving right now is a beer!