Like everyone else I know, I still have bills, work, and endless to-do lists not going anywhere. But in my never-ending search to do more fun shit, as I’ve been flipping through my calendar and the last few months of 2025, it’s stacked more with assignments, not abundance.
Yep, there’s holiday things, parties, pop-ins, etc., all of which I love. But I’m fully being greedy and I want more, tons more, of the smaller things that fill me up just as much as the big ones. More time with friends, laughing over foolishness, serious things, and everything in between.
So that’s…
Squeezing in spontaneous fun
Shifting things around for simple joys and
Shuffling out what doesn’t sit right with me anymore.
A day or so ago, two sets of friends wanted to meet up. Excellent, love it. But as usual, all of our weekends were booked solid. I mean our Thursday through Sunday had been swallowed by insert plans around life’s usual hustle. Then someone casually threw out, “What about Monday?”
Monday?! Monday?! Crazy! I almost laughed. But then I thought about it. Er… why not?
The idea felt strange and yet, not so strange, especially since I’d already broken my own rules by going out on a Sunday night — yes, a school night — in de club, in DC to celebrate a friend’s milestone birthday. It took me a few days to recover, seeing as the majority of us early on, verbally committed to leaving well before the end. But we didn’t. Damn, that DJ was good! And it was so worth it.
A big break from the norm was the energizing reminder I needed to break me out of the expected, and make room for something really good when you least expect it.
So why not Tuesday? Wednesday? Hell, why not Monday? Who decided that Thursday through Sunday still had to be the set-in-stone “fun days” and that’s all we’re allowed… especially in our Big Age? Well, besides the 2-3 business days needed for recovery… but OK, we’ll figure that out.
That little shift cracked something open for me. Now, does it mean that Mondays I’ll be partying it up until 3am on the regular? Oh, hell no! It just means… it allowed me to rethink my schedule through a different lens: abundance first, assignments second. Work will always be there and no one’s ignoring responsibilities. But at the same time, making huge spaces for joy is now non-negotiable, instead of optional.
Think about it, play out the scenario if you will —
A Monday movie night with a friend can reset that Monday-glum-day feeling in the best way.
A Tuesday meetup for a walk even, after dinner might lead to a conversation that nourishes you more than anything you’ll cross off your to-do list.
The Wednesday special at a fave eatery — its slowest night that makes for a great midweek treat. Maybe just desserts?
That Thursday happy hour is less crowded, often cheaper, and might even feel more relaxed. Unless your happy hour needs a certain level of liveness or volume of hyped-up crowd, I completely get it.
The point is, it’s not about waiting for the right or proper time. It’s about realizing that abundance doesn’t have to wait for the weekend.
My calendar of shame is lame
My calendar has been telling a story I don’t agree with. It’s been shouting “busy” louder than it’s been whispering “fulfilled.” And I’m over it. No, I won’t be cramming it with stuff just to fill it or just because. But I don’t want to live in that imbalance either.
So, here’s my calendar reframe: abundance gets penciled in first.
The work, the to-dos (aka assignments) still have their place — my mortgage still needs to be paid and I’m quite partial to eating and electricity. Call me Bougie if you will.
But those can no longer steal the spotlight. It’s going to take some time, more thought and planning but my energy deserves better. My Big Age life deserves better. And it doesn’t have to always need company, or to take two, to do anything. Solo is Goal-o, baby! I may have made that up.
What can this ‘abundance over assignments’ look like?
Well, we all have different lives, so naturally it’ll be different for everyone.
- Downing delicious desserts with friends?
- A new fitness class or streaming session?
- Quiet nights reading, or that reading spot with the upstairs bar?
- Learning something new, or teaching it?
Blocking hours, days, some space first, to make sure it doesn’t get filled with assignments until you can come up with your flavor of abundance? I really, really am down with this approach!
The key is giving yourself the freedom to say yes when the chance comes up. And not treating your joy like it only belongs in one teeny tiny corner of the week. If that week’s even available.
So my new schedule isn’t just about crossing things off that I know I still have to do. It’s about weaving, sprinkling or better yet, getting to a place where I’m flooding my hours, days, and weeks, with what feels abundant and deliciously good for my soul.
And if that means a Monday night out for a few hours with a friend becomes some new monthly, or random tradition, then I’m signing this bitch up! But don’t worry, I still know when my bedtime is. I’m older, yes, Big Age if you will, but not insane.
So, what about you — where could you make space for abundance in the middle of your week of assignments? This week, try treating Monday through Wednesday as worthy of fun too.
