I'm Surrounded By Work.

It's finally Saturday and my first chance to sleep in for what seemed like ages.

By the time I pull myself out of bed, I ponder the pros and cons of eating a late breakfast or if I should hold off a bit and eat an early lunch.

I decide to settle for the latter, but make myself a cup of coffee. As I'm setting my mug down and move a pile of duvetyne aside so I have a place to sit, I look around my messier than usual apartment. Not having a decent amount of time off in what seems like eons has led to things piling up in my humble abode and it hits me that I am now literally surrounded by work.

My entryway is littered with work boots, waterproof shoes, and other footwear I only wear on set. My kitchen sink is filled with coffee stained travel mugs that I sip from on my way to work while a substantial collection of snacks I "liberated" from the crafty table hogs the counter. The dining area is currently home to a slew of light bulbs, ratchet straps, gels and other expendables I've acquired from shows that have wrapped but haven't found a storage spot for yet. My coffee table houses an unofficial collection of Sharpies and Marks-A-Lots and C-47s that I forgot were in my pocket until I sat down on my couch after a long day. The couch itself has a pile of industry related newsletters and magazines on one of its cushions and next to my DVD player is a collection of projects I worked on by haven't had the time to check out.

And my bedroom is no better. I have a laundry basket full of clean clothes for work (honestly, I've been procrastinating on putting the clothes away since I know it'll be empty again in a few days as I pull things out of it every morning. I know, I know.) and my hamper is overflowing with dirty ones. My desk holds piles of accumulated business cards, pay stubs, and carbon copies of time cards. More forgotten C-47s pulled from pockets and a bottle of water from craft service sits on my nightstand. The jeans and shirt I wore to work last night (that I really should toss in the hamper) lies in a crumpled pile on my bathroom counter while an (oversized) crew jacket is draped over the back of my chair.

Even my car isn't immune to the take-over. My work bag and rain gear fill my back trunk while my passenger seat could be mistaken for a shrine to old callsheets, lot passes and production maps.

It seems like these days, I'm surrounded by work no matter where I go. Most of the time, I'm either at work or at home where it looks like a work bomb exploded. The rare occasion I have the time to venture out and see friends, it's usually spent hanging out with someone I met while working... And the topic of conversation inevitably leads back to work (not that I mind*).

The only time I can recall not being within reach of anything work related was when I was at the grocery store a couple of weeks ago. And now that I think about it, I bought a couple frozen meals during that trip for the rare occasion where I actually get home from set early enough to eat dinner.

I love what I do for a living so it's no surprise that so much of my life and space is taken over by it. But am I the only one that lives like this? Is there any other industry out there where it's so easy to be consumed by it?





* 1) I've been so busy lately anyway that if I couldn't talk about work, I'd kind of have nothing to to say. I basically have no personal life until the slow season starts. 2) These get togethers often turn into bitchfests about the current or previous shows we were on because we certainly can't vent to our current co-workers for obvious reasons. It's kind of like a support group. 3) They're often a great networking opportunity and you learn who's on what show, where and for how long. Not to mention your showbusiness friends will know if/when you're available should they hear of anything.