I know there are times that I write about how I wish I had more fun stuff in my life or how I need to work on doing more when I’m not working. And I’ve gotten pretty good at scheduling stuff and finding things that I like to go to do. But then there are times where I just want to sit on my couch and watch tv. But I know if I just do that, I’ll feel like I’m missing out on something and I’ll regret it later.
This week I RSVPed to go to a happy hour that was hosted by the NextGen Performers committee of SAG-AFTRA. These happy hours are really just a good excuse to get together with awesome, like-minded people and to have fun. There is no agenda for the event, nothing is really scheduled, and everyone is usually in a great mood because there is free food (the key to making lots of actors happy). And I was excited to go because I knew I’d have some friends there and since it can be tough to find time to see them, these events are sometimes they only time we get together.
When I RSVPed for it, I assumed I’d be looking forward to the event. And I was until the day of. It had nothing to do with the event, I just was not feeling up for going out. I was dealing with nausea, I was tired, and I just didn’t feel like getting myself together and being social. But I thought about it and realized that I would regret it if I didn’t go. So I took my time getting dressed and ready and headed over to happy hour.
It helped that it was held at Rush St. which is super close to my house. I would have walked, but I don’t like to walk home in the dark alone so I drove there. But it still was very nice to have it be minutes away so I didn’t really have any excuse not to go and make an appearance. And I was hoping that once I got there, my mood would improve and I would feel better and I would spend a good amount of time there.
Unfortunately for me, my nausea wasn’t going away while I was there. I didn’t have any food because I didn’t know how my body would react to it, but things just weren’t getting better for me. I tried to focus on talking to a few of my friends who were at the event which was fun. We all always have lots of random updates on our lives to share. And many of the people at the happy hour were attending their very first union event so it was fun to talk to them about what other opportunities are out there for them to participate in. I always want to help union members (whether they are new or not) to get more involved if they want to do so. There are a lot of opportunities for members even if they don’t want to be involved in the politics of the union. And some people do want to get involved in the politics and I’m glad I can share my experiences with them so they know what to expect and what they need to do to run for an office.
Even though I was having fun talking with people, while I was there I just kept thinking how I really didn’t feel up for being social. It had nothing to do with the people I was talking to. I think almost anyone can relate to just wanting to be home and by yourself when you don’t feel good. I can’t let this be an excuse for me since I seem to feel nauseous 2 weeks out of each month, but I also don’t want to push my body too hard and then make things worse for me. So after being at happy hour for about an hour, I made my rounds of saying goodbye to my friends and headed back to my car to go home.
I wish I had been able to stay longer because I was having a good time there, but it just wasn’t meant to be. And I was also a bit worried that some of the new people I was meeting might think I was being annoyed by talking to them or something because I know I was a bit distracted. Again, it had nothing to do with who I was talking to. My body was just distracting me. But I think making myself go out to happy hour was the right choice because I did get to have some fun and I never have regrets about going out and having fun.
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