My Day Off

Yesterday was my day off. I’m lucky enough to live a blessed life. I only “work” four days a week, and even then only six hours a day. To be fair, it’s not actually work since I don’t get paid. On the other hand, since I’m currently living at home, I don’t actually need to buy anything, and since despite being over-educated as I am, couldn’t find a respectable job shelving things or distributing fast food, I was able to enjoy my Tuesday in the typical way.

                I woke up at 11:30 am. I decided to go for a run. To be clear, I didn’t go for a run, but somehow deciding to made me feel better about myself. Instead, I went downstairs to start my day. After grabbing a sweet and salty nut bar for “breakfast,” and availing myself of all the Royal Baby news I could get. For those of you who have been legally dead for the last week, a woman who happened to marry a man whose grandmother is the figurehead monarch of a country we aren’t a part of had a baby. Although technically, Grenada is a British protectorate, so it’s very possible my knowledge of the Royal birth could come in handy.

                After that, I accomplished one small thing. For the unemployed twenty-something, this is quite possibly the best sociocultural phenomenon ever created. If you accomplish “one small thing”, then ipso facto, your day magically transforms itself from “wasted” to “productive.” I filled out the health form for St. Georges. To be honest, It was supposedly due 24 days ago. Also, its been sitting on my bureau along with my test results for the past week. But after five minutes of filling out health history, and a brief google to find out how old my dad is (I thought he was born in 1963, not 1961), I was ready to have it faxed over to SGU. Not that I was going to fax it. I’m not even sure how a fax machine works. I know that there’s a telephone attached. Other than that, however, I’m entirely clueless.

                Having finished my “work” for the day, I could settle down to an afternoon of Netflix without feeling guilty. A few hours of this went by quickly. A sudden burst of productivity followed lunch, probably the sugar rush from the “lemonade” I made. (I only used one spoonful of sugar. Unfortunately, it was a serving spoon.) I measured the suitcase I’m planning on bringing down to school. After satisfying myself that it would fit the size requirements I emptied it of the things currently in it (largely books and clothes from undergrad that I hadn’t gotten around to unpacking) by throwing those things I might bring to Grenada in one pile on the floor, and those that wouldn’t make the trip in another. Now on a roll, I did the same for my closet. Having made a huge mess of things, I got bored and went downstairs to watch TV.

                I did eventually run after dinner. I finished a 5K. Sloppy Joes are not an ideal pre-run food. I ran the whole distance without stopping. My summer goal of dropping 15 pounds may not be going especially well—I’ve lost negative three pounds—but at least I’m in slightly better shape.

                After all, it’s the small things that matter in life. Getting my relaxation in now is probably for the best. I probably won’t rest for the next four years.