She works hard for a living

Every year from October to March the following year, I literally run. It's my busy time, and expecting me to be at meetings or take time off just isn't going to happen. I'm responsible for accepting students (and I'm the only one doing it), which influences our salaries, student numbers etc. I am custodian of application forms and my policy is to respond immediately to both requests and applications. So it's all on my head! Or at least so it seems.

Which is why, while everyone else took yesterday morning for a meeting, yesterday afternoon off, and will take this afternoon off too, here I sit. Working. Or should I say, here I run - from fax machine to office to phones to postbox. That's just how it goes. Yesterday I was picking up switchboard calls and taking messages too. Just to add to my busyness and convince anyone from the meeting that I wasn't simply bunking, but was working.

I was hoping to get the few items I need to actually buy for Christmas this afternoon (fabric for tablecloths, for example). But I've realized that the mall is going to be PACKED today. So I've arranged that while everyone is here on Monday morning, and they're liberally supplied with information to hand out to anyone needing it, I'm going to head off early to the mall, before the day's rush takes over. I am still owed an afternoon off for November, and will take that too on Monday. This week I've cleared my desk right down to the wood, so I think it will be OK.

Although I suffer from an over-inflated sense of duty, I'm sure the place won't collapse without me for a few hours.