Hello, welcome to #weekendcoffeeshare! If we were having coffee, I would love a cup. I will need all the caffeine I can get for what I’m about to do tonight.

What am I doing tonight?

I’m going to a photo shoot with my night photography class tonight. I’m excited and nervous at the same time. I’m excited because I will finally learn to take photos of the milky way but I’m nervous about driving to the location and I’m kinda afraid of the dark. Driving in almost total darkness sounds like a bad combo to me.

I’ve done it once or twice before when I went to Capitol Reef National Park. I can tell you my legs were shaking the entire time because I was terrified an animal might jump out at any moment. Thankfully, this time, I’ll be following my instructor, that way, if there is an animal ahead, her car will be able to shoo it away for me.

If we were having coffee, I would show you the before and after photos of a section in my backyard.

The picture on the upper left corner is the before and the other two are yesterday. I spent the last 2 weekends pulling weeds out of my backyard. I also spent last weekend laying down wood chips and connecting the drip irrigation system. I was almost done connecting the drip system when my lighter decided to run out of fuel and I needed the lighter to help soften the tubing.

In simpler terms, I have been working almost 3 weeks straight with little to no rest.

Yesterday, I decided to not work so many overtime hours and told my manager I was taking half day off. He had been wanting me to take time off, to avoid burn out, which, honestly, I was feeling it this week. I told mom I was getting off work early, she asked, “why?”

“Because I’m tired,” I replied.

“If he lets you work overtime, then work more overtime.” Mom said.

“I’m not a robot, I get tired.” Mom walked away without any kind of response.

I logged out of work at noon and decided to clean out the weeds and re-mulch the area at the side of the house. Mom kept saying, “I won’t do any yard work this year.” So it’s all me or no one else will do it.

After I finished weeding and mulching, I walked around the garden, admiring how weed-free and pretty it looks when I suddenly had this crazy idea to grab my camera and take pictures of the flowers. I was two pictures in when mom said, “So that’s why you have to get off work early? To play with your camera?”

“I don’t need a reason for getting off work early. I can’t work 50, 60 hours a week forever, you know. You’re not the only one with aches and pains and exhaustion.”

“Can’t I make a joke?” She said and I thought, if she wants to sound like a joke, then make it sound like a joke because how she said it did not sound one bit like a joke. It sounded like she was calling me lazy and from the way I’ve been working, I don’t think I can even remotely be called lazy.

About three hours later, after doing some more weeding, mulching, and reseeding a section of the lawn, as I was enjoying a bowl of fruit and yogurt, mom said, “If you stop working, money will stop coming in.”

All I wanted was a break from work, why do I get the feeling that that it’s a crime, especially for me, because mom takes plenty of breaks from work. Am I supposed to work like a mule, until I’m physically incapable of performing my tasks?

I hope you’ve enjoyed this edition of #weekendcoffeeshare, hope to chat again same time next week.