This is my life.

Working 12-hour+ days…

This means, waking up, going to work at 7:45 am then going home no less than that time 12 hours later, and lately, overtime till around 10:40-ish…

Squeezing in 1-2 times a week of wallclimbing if possible, gym if I’m not particularly lazy…

Chinese classes ideally twice a week…

Making up for my lack of involvement in my organization just because am too damn busy (don’t worry guys, October should be fun!)…

Texting/emailing/receiving calls from Aussie guys even though it clearly doesn’t seem to go anywhere (starting to become my daily dose of Aussie guy, must be careful not to make it a habit)…

The couple of weeks, I’ve been clubbing a bit (once a weekend maybe?), but more as a victim of circumstance (birthday party) than sheer luck. I went to Carnegies last Saturday and the smoke almost killed my lungs, aggravating my cold and causing me to cough incessantly for three whole days…

Meeting up with friends who scarily so, I have less and less in common with… mainly because a lot of them ask about my boys, to which I answer, “What boys?” instead of my usual “Which one?”

Seriously, when work is starting to become a major part of your life, what else can you talk about save for the most mundane of things? I doubt a lot of my friends want to find out how a client was unprofessionally late and screwed up the schedule, how drivers in Dongguan and Shenzhen suck, or if a major corporate forgot a meeting. Instead, they want to know how many guys are presently screwing up my life, how many friends are stabbing my back or how many people are secretly pissing me off.

Bad news just sounds most interesting.

So this is my mundane life.

Take out the excitement from months ago. Of activities too numerous to count, meeting individuals who just scream “Weirdo!” and of a more lax schedule where I can meet whomever I want, whenever I want for dinner, and then for drinks.

Instead, my life is mainly about work, an occasional social event and then going back home to sleep and rest.

Don’t really have the time to be bothered socializing when I realized I need more of my beauty sleep.

So I realize a couple of things lately: First, I am not the social butterfly as most of you think I am.

Sure, I do prefer going out instead of staying home, and my home describes it perfectly — it looks like a hotel room with no chamberladies coming to clean it up. But now, it’s more of staying late at work finishing a report, than partying up a storm in the hippest night clubs.

Secondly, I embrace challenges, and challenging work/activities takes over my life.

Maybe, the reason why I partied and got involved so much before was because I had nothing to occupy me. My work then was very easy-going and I could’ve done my work with my eyes closed. There weren’t too much stress, and though people would think that’s one hell of a great job where you haven’t exceeded your capabilities and still get paid, I can honestly admit that though the people are great and so is the salary, the work itself kinda bored me.

In fact, despite my seeming to complain about the consequence of my new workload, I have to admit that I’m lovin’ it. I love the stress, the fast pace, and the excitement. It’s like an aphrodisiac when you’re dealing with people who manage money that amounts to more than your company grosses per year.

So it’s been a thrilling ride so far (hence, my lack of updates cause am just too tired when I get home), though more exhausting than before. And despite my physical exhaustion, I love it. I love the mental stimulation, the amount of brainpower I am getting in my work.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again — at least now, I know exactly where I’m going. It’s not an easy road, but at least, I know.

And that beats out most of the people who still doesn’t know what the hell they want.

Sure, my life at present may not be as interesting as before and yes, I am not meeting as much men as I did. But then again, their quality has increased and conversation has become more stimulating.

So this is my life — 75% work, 10% wallclimbing, 8% Chinese lessons, 2% Aussie guy, and 5% everything else.

Most people think it’s sad.

I just think it’s part of growing up.

Growing up means changing priorities — from social butterfly to workaholic.

Growing up means gritting your teeth and slugging it out — 12 hour workdays, overtime and working your ass off.

Growing up means you have to take charge of your life and do something with it — Sure, life’s tougher but at least it’s not just in cruise control and going nowhere.

And growing up means sacrificing a bit to gain more — good to know that I have sado-masochistic tendencies.

This is my life, ladies and gentlemen.

Welcome to my world.