What went wrong here?

When I left my job it was to work less (among other reasons).  And I did.  Depending on the time of year I worked what I would consider part-time to almost full time.  It was great.  I had lots of time during the weekdays to do the things I wanted.  I usually got my running and dog training done before evening and had that time to just relax. The house was usually clean.  Everyone was happy.

Then something happened. Apparently relief vets are very much in demand around here right now.  I am scheduled at least 4, often 5 and a few times 6 days a week until the end of May.  My waking hours (especially the daylight ones) are consumed with work, running (as the half-marathon gets closer) and tracking (with class advancing and in full swing).The house is often a mess.  I finally resorted to paying a friend to clean it.  Which actually is working out well for everyone.  Although I may be worse off than I thought as she texted to ask if I also needed help with laundry when she arrived to clean and saw the state of my new laundry room!

Working this much is not great for my mental health or temperament.  As the week goes on I get progressively easier to agitate.  In particular if I end up dealing with lots of wackos.  This week I set a new record of 5 clinics in 5 days and had to deal with crazy people, rude people, idiots, bad pets, problem staff and one police officer.  I may or may not have made a reference to some people needing cyanide in their coffee or other beverage of choice.

I realize I could just say no and only work 3-4 days a week but in theory there will be times when I don't have as many offers.  So I take it when I can get it.  Something's got to give eventually right?

On the flip side the money is good and I have 2 vacations, one 4 day weekend and a mini-trip planned over the next few months.  And they are largely paid for.  So, I guess it could be a lot worse.  But I sure am tired!