Daily writing prompt

Do lazy days make you feel rested or unproductive?

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In my house we have a tradition that we used to call “flake days.” The kids were little and had all sorts of activities on the weekends and we would be running ragged trying to keep up with everything. Every now and then the schedule would work out and we would have a day with nothing scheduled so we’d take advantage of it by just spending the day flaking in font of the TV watching movies or playing games or just reading a book. Those were lazy and unproductive days but they were simply wonderful.

Now that the kids have grown up and moved out I still find the occasional flake day to be beneficial. They are definitely unproductive and I do often feel guilty about that, but Jen and I both work hard during the week and sometimes a quiet, unproductive Saturday or Sunday is just what we need.

I look at energy and motivation and drive as a sort of gas tank. Sometimes you need to take a weekend day off to let the tank fill itself up so that you are better equipped to handle what comes up during the week. Does that make sense? Is that me justifying being lazy? Probably. Do I care? Nope, I do not.

Daily writing prompt

When you think of the word “successful,” who’s the first person that comes to mind and why?

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There are many types of success. I have one particular example in mind. There’s the success Steve Jobs had. He was massively successful as both a business man and in revenge. No. really. Think about it. He started Apple with two other guys. Built it up to be a major player in tech and then the company kicked him to the curb. What did he do? He started a competitor, watched in delight as Apple nearly destroyed itself, then when they were about to go under he came back and turned them into one of the biggest companies on Earth. That’s professional revenge at it’s finest. It’s not what I am going for in this post though.

How about Miss Swift? Her music makes me nauseous, but some how she has managed to become a galaxy sized success in an industry that literally does not exist anymore. The music business ate itself through stupidity and short sightedness and yet somehow she still remains as a giant standing above the ruins. How? Why? What does it all mean? It’s success on an unbelievable scale but it’s not what I am going for in this post.

Nope, the success I am thinking of is my parents. 55 years. My parents were happily married for 55 years. Yes, the last few were brutally difficult as my mother’s dementia progressed, but when she passed away in February they had been married for a smidge over 55.5 years. I call that success. That’s the kind of success I would like to have in my life, though if Jen and I are going to make it to 55 years I will be 93 years old so… yeah, not likely. Still, it’s a lovely goal, isn’t it?

So there you have it. When I think of success, this is what I think of. My parents’ marriage. May we all be so lucky.