Fighting FOMO With Fuzzy Blankets

As someone who has freshly transitioned to a 9-5 lifestyle, something I have been struggling with is finding the right balance of fun outside of work. I find that an 8 hour day usually leaves me pretty worn out after firing on all cylinders for so long.

In the age of self-care, one would expect more how-to articles aimed at living a fulfilling life while balancing work and rest, but alas–not enough geared towards the Lyme disease having senior citizens in 22 year old bodies. I’ve always leaned more towards the “plus” side of 8 plus hours of sleep per night, and recent months have been no exception.?

Many after work activities are centered around drinking, or start past 9pm (what I consider to be a reasonable bedtime), so that begs the questions–how do I make my life fun? My answer? Make the most of the smaller moments.

Recently my college friend was in town for the weekend, so we seized the morning and got coffee before walking around our old campus. Last Saturday, I was out until 1am at a show that my friend had booked. This week, I have dinner with a friend planned on a weeknight. It's all about balance between the nights out and the nights in.

A few weeks ago, I had the house to myself for a yucky weather weekend and spent the time completing a puzzle. This weekend, I watched a documentary with my parents and dished out cake. Last night, I read a book in one sitting (something I used to do nearly daily). It didn't feel like the funnest thing I could've been doing, especially with concerts and trivia nights calling to me from my friends Instagram stories, but they were all the right call at the time, and ended up being more delightful than I could've thought.

Sometimes it's about just keeping yourself out of your blankets because you're bored, but normally it’s all about finding the things that you can fit into the everyday without much effort that can bring you joy.

Something that has been my savior since the start of the pandemics has been Estate Sales--low capacity, spread throughout the state, and full of tiny treasures. It's another early morning activity, frequented by people of the 30+ age demographic, and perfectly acceptable to be listening to an audiobook while trolling through them. I've found some amazing items, from limited prints that I know will hang in my house for years, to clothing I'm now able to love and give a new life to.

Sure, I still love a night out, and try to go to as many concerts as I can, but sometimes a 1am bedtime isn’t simpatico with your 9:30am meeting. The most important thing is to fight that feeling of FOMO by reminding yourself that in the long term, doing something that lets you save your health and energy while having fun is much better than doing something that might be fun, but will leave you feeling like Garfield on Monday morning.

Throw a dance party in your living room, plan a Sandra Bullock movie marathon, bake three different chocolate chip cookie recipes and rank them to see which is best, the opportunities for a good night in are endless. What are some of your favorite ways to have some lowkey fun after work or on the weekends??