Have I Even Had a Holiday Season this Holiday Season?

Between my wedding, being out of town for the Thanksgiving holiday, a week of illness, & some upcoming travel, it feels like this holiday season has completely gotten away from me. It's not even Christmas yet, & I already feel like I missed Christmas... 

Someone recently commented on one of my Instagram photos that I'm "sick all the time," & I've since felt self-conscious mentioning when I don't feel well. I do seem to have a crummy immune system, & 2017 has been a year full of illness for me. Fortunately, none of has been major, but, yeah... I've been sick a lot. And it kind of sucks.

On Thanksgiving, I slept in a chilly room & woke up with a terrible sore throat. By Saturday, I was full-blown sick - nose running, head throbbing, throat burning, muscles aching. I spent most of Sunday in bed, & though I haven't taken any time off work, I've taken significant naps every weekday thus far.

The reason I can't take off? My huge biennial work conference - attended by 6,000 people! - is next week. I leave for Boston on Tuesday, so I'm completely underwater & overloaded. When I'm not sleeping, I'm working. A lot.

I'd originally made some fun plans to balance out all the work this week, figuring I'd work my butt off during workdays, then do some entertaining stuff each evening. Alas, I've had to bail on every single thing aside from working & communing with my bed.

Because I'm feeling whiny, here's what I'd planned & exactly how bummed I am to miss all of it.

• Tuesday: I abandoned plans to attend the launch of CLE Starts Here, a new exhibit of the Western Reserve Historical Society. The exhibit, "a digital portal that explores the rich & diverse history of Cleveland & Northeast Ohio," is now open to the public, & though I still look forward to checking it out, I was excited about the fanfare of the launch event.
     
• Wednesday: I didn't make it to Cleveland Heights for my book club's discussion of our latest read, A Man Called Ove, which was a bummer because A) I like spending time with my book club friends (who are just my regular friends), & B) I have a lot to say about the book. Instead, I took a nap at 5pm... & woke up at 8:15pm.
     
• Thursday: I haven't seen my Big Brothers Big Sisters CLE "little sister" at all in November, which breaks my heart because I aim to see her once a month as promised. This time, we were going to get Brewnuts; what 15-year-old wouldn't love couture donuts? Alas, Mike reminded me that I am sick & need to cancel my plans, which it broke my heart double to do.
     
• Friday: Mike & I are planning to put up our Christmas tree & get cozy, & I was going to surprise him by taking him to The Spotted Owl, one of two bars in Ohio to be transformed into a Christmas bar called Miracle. Their special menu includes cocktails like Muletide, Bad Santa, & You'll Shoot Your Rye Out. We'll still do an indoor date night, but cocktail-centric plans are probably a bad idea for someone on a Prednisone prescription.
     
• Saturday: I'm headed to Hudson for a fellow blogger's Coffee & Collab (which I'm still planning on, as I hope/assume I'll feel better by then), & afterwards, I'll continue on to Cuyahoga Falls. Originally,  my friend Sam & I were going to the Front Street Pub Crawl - but again, Prednisone, so now, we're just getting dinner. It'll still be nice, but it's no holiday bar crawl!

On Sunday, I'll be getting everything ready for a week of travel & a very intense work schedule. I don't get back until December 10th, & by then, the holiday season will be very nearly over. I don't have any plans for my return, though, so I'm hoping I can fit in some fun stuff.