To juggle office work and family life is no easy task. Both aspect of my life demands full attention, careful analysis, circumspect planning and meticulous execution in order to avoid unnecessary injury of whatever kind. It’s barely lunch-time and not one in my ‘to-do-list’ had been ticked-off. As pressure keeps mounting on and as stress continues to provoke me to blow my top, I have found a sure way of thwarting them all-- A ‘Harry Houdini’ act -- allotting one hour or two, to get away from them all.
Escape Act No. 1. -- A drop and smash game in the badminton court. A competitive badminton game with friends (in lieu of lunch) makes me physically revitalized, mentally reconditioned and emotionally stable (ha-ha). The powerful smash, a witty drop, the sweat, the quick shower, a one-liter energy drink and most of all, the fun and excitement, could really make me going for the rest of the day. This one I wouldn’t give up… Not until I beat Mr. N. Robertson in a single match…
Escape Act No. 2. Tai-chi Chuan, anyone. They say, this activity of Chinese origin, turns all the negatives into positives. A sure fire way of attaining balance in life, not to mention the health benefits it gives. The mother of yin and yang. For whatever this worth, I really enjoy executing the slow, fluid movements of this activity, from creating a taichi-ball and patting the horse’s mane to the complicated kicks and so on. I had just completed the 24 basic forms of this and I am now hurdling the advance forms. Whew, what a challenge!
Escape Act No. 3 - A one-hour spa. My officemates would understand what this means. I do not want to divulge further, as it may incriminate all of us, but one thing is sure, this spa in the afternoon is the most effective way to beat stress. (Thanks Petes… for that fragrant, secret oil).
Escape Act No. 4 - Chatting, the old-fashion way. Not in the net, but with office co-workers and some girl friends. There was never as engrossing as talking and talking and talking. After doing mental calisthenics in resolving cases, after endless brainstorming, after twisting your brain to find the right and just solution and after defending the conclusion reached in front of your boss, an hour of talking about anything under the sun is really very calming. One couldn’t just imagine the diversity of topics we have – from political issues to what’s-in-your-I-pod stuff, from business matters to Kathie Holmes’ gnarly feet, from Buddhist teachings to kama-sutra’s perfumed garden. You name it, we talk about it.
Escape Act No. 5 - Coffee bean and Tea Leaf. And anything that goes with it….I mean, the usual chatting, listening to MP3s (recently burned by an officemate) and reading a good book (not a law book), newspaper and magazine. Drinking coffee in my office is just as routinary as breathing, and as relaxing as smoking. Tea is equally exciting. Our office tea pot brews black, green, white, jasmine and mint, chamomile, rose, earl grey, cinnamon and sometimes, combination of known tea herbs– you name it, we have it.
Escape Act No. 6 – A phone call from hubby. A minute or two of talk with hubby cuts the boredom of office works. I always find talking to him so thrilling and exhilarating even though, the purpose of his call is just to ask, how the kids are, what I have for lunch, or how’s the traffic that morning or did I come to the office late or sometimes, just double checking the amount of check I issued… Whatever his intention in calling me just brightens up my day.
And lastly, that incomparable therapeutic malling. My office is just a walking distance from a big mall. That is why if I really feel burnt-out, I usually ask an officemate to have a walk in the mall, to binge on sweets (usually smoothies), to check stuffs put on sale and to purchase that stuff put on sale. There is this unexplained feeling of satisfaction whenever I acquire (at a reduced price) an exquisite conquest, which I had long been eyeing-on.
Try escaping…. It’s fun…. It’s soothing…… It’s comforting…..
