The One with Growing Older

You know those moments when it suddenly hits you that you've aged, and you're not some spry young thing any more. Well, I had one of those moments this past weekend. I already had plans on Friday to go to a "toy" party with my SIL when a friend of mine asked if I wanted to go salsa dancing with some girlfriends. I told her that I would love to but I was otherwise engaged. She said that they would be there until 4 in the morning and that I should just come join them after the party. Back in the day this would have been a normal weekend for me. When I first moved to Austin, I had just graduated from college and was 23 years old. I used to go out every Friday and Saturday and bar hop on 6th St. until everything closed. Then my friends would come back to my place, and we'd all sit in the hot tub and talk until the sun came up before we would finally go to sleep. I realized on Friday that I just can't do this anymore. I would be at the "toy" party until close to 11, then I'd have to go home and change before going out, and then I'd be dancing until dawn. I no longer have the energy for this. So, when another friend called and asked me to play poker that is what I decided to do after the party. Their house was on my way home and playing poker only requires mental energy. I can't tell you how much this saddens me. I know that I am moving into a new more adult phase of my life, but a part of me is mourning the loss of my party girl self. She was cool chick, although maybe a little bit of a lush.