After an incredibly hectic, busy week in which my major event this semester went off well and was a moderate success (THANK GOD), I have today off. And to say I'm exhausted would be an understatement--I ache all over and could barely get my eyelids to open until after 1pm.
I got up at 9am (and felt guilty about it, as I always do if I get up after 8) and attempted to do some reading and persuade myself to exercise...but after twice confusing what day it was by frantically yelling at Brian to get ready for class (he doesn't have class today until 1:30) and then asking him what time his lecture was (answer: tomorrow), I decided I really should get some more rest.
But I felt guilty about it.
Then Brian said something I had never thought about it before. "Honey, your Puritan ancestors may be turning over in their grave, and somewhere your father is sniffing the air and saying 'Someone's being lazy--I hope it's not my daughter!', but really, it is ok to be lazy when you don't have anything to do".
I actually have no idea whether my ancestors were Puritans, but given that they a.) were British and b.) arrived in American in the early-mid 1600s, it seems likely. And he's certainly right about my upbringing--even on vacations, we (by we, I mean myself and anyone who happened to be on vacation with my dad) were expected to get up early (7-8am), eat breakfast, and spend all day doing things--seeing sights, going to museums, and otherwise exhausting ourselves. On my honeymoon, I had a huge list of things I wanted to accomplish and drug Brian out of bed by 8am and down the streets of Charleston at a brisk pace throughout the 4 days we were there. In high school, my dad, stepmom, stepsister, and myself went to New York City, and when my stepmom and stepsister suggested a shopping trip, I was appalled. There were so many things to do--Ellis Island, the Met, Central Park! And of course, we should really walk it all. It's lazy to take a cab.
My first vacation with Brian's family, the summer before college, was quite a shock. People got up when they felt like it--sometimes as late as noon--ate something, and maybe ventured out around 2 or 3pm. We were wasting the day! This couldn't be right!
Brian will also be the first to tell you about my Puritanical attitude towards alcohol, tobacco, and all forms of drugs (as in, we'd all really be better without them). Sometimes this causes some conflicts, seeing as how we're Catholic and drinking and smoking in moderation are something most Catholics take for granted.
It's curious that, 400 years later, I'm still behaving in a manner that is instantly recognizable as Puritan, not to mention the vast differences that exist between my reserved British family and Brian's gregarious Italian one. When we started dating, it created some culture clashes, to say the least. It still does, for that matter, not to mention some heavy self-guilt when I want to sleep in or want a drink in the evening for no reason other than that it would be pleasant.
That's all for now...I have a ton of things to do. Probably. When I can think of them.
1 comment:
Whenever I go on vacation I always makes lists (with specific times) of things to do each day. I don't think that's Purtanism, though, just probably my mother's OCD that got passed down to me.
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