Lazy Days

I feel like today was one of the first truly lazy days I’ve had in a while. I usually can’t sleep past seven in the morning, eight if I’m lucky. Today I made it all the way to ten. It’s shocking to wake up so late when you’re not used to it. I remember just two days ago waking up, applying for jobs, doing laundry, and completing an entire list of chores by ten.

Still, I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised. Just as I normally get up earlier, I also usually go to bed earlier. Last night, I stayed awake until about 1:30 am in order to catch up on the latest season of Survivor.

I currently live with my wife, my mother-in-law, and my sister-in-law. We’re not the best at watching the episodes as they come out, but it has become an enjoyable way for all of us to spend time together. If you’ve ever watched Survivor with a group before, I’m sure you know what I’m talking about.

Like most reality TV shows, Survivor gets you talking. I love speculating with others about what might happen, who will be voted off next, and analyzing the social dynamics. There’s something about the show that has captivated me for a long time.

All that to say, that it certainly captivated me last night, pushing me well beyond my normal 9:00pm bedtime.

The irony isn’t lost on me. Here I sit writing a blog at 10:26pm. Pushing your bedtime so far back has ripple effects.

So, yes, I had a bit of a lazy day today. Not that I did nothing productive. I still helped with the house chores and even spent a couple of hours outside working in my garden. I don’t know if you’ve ever tried to grow your own food before, but I’m learning that it’s more nuanced than you might expect.

My wife and I planted our first crops—first ever that is—about a month ago. We live in Eastern Washington, so the weather is finally starting to look better. Even the plants, especially the weeds, know it. I feel like I blinked and BAM! It’s weed city out there.

I’m not just talking about a few little ones, not even a few massive ones. Imagine your garden has the consistency of a typical 1970s living room floor. You know, the ones with the shag carpets? That’s how many weeds I had growing.

Fortunately, the crops we planted didn’t get smothered out, and I weeded most of the garden without too much difficulty.

I know, I know, ‘but you said you had a lazy day.’ I hear you, and yes, I haven’t presented the lazy part yet, so let me enlighten you. After I spent some time in the garden, I found my way into my mother-in-law’s pop-up tent trailer and spent a couple of hours lying around in it. I could hear birds chirping and I enjoyed how warm it was. (My bedroom is in the basement and it’s constantly below 65 degrees)

I likely would have stayed there for hours, but my wife invited me to eat lunch with her. We spent some time together, then she took a nap, and I sat down at my computer and started playing a video game.

I won’t bore you with the details, but I spent far too much time at the computer. I don’t normally spend more than a couple of hours a week playing video games, but today was different. Part of me wonders if I’m trying to squeeze in as much time as I can before my son is born. Something tells me there won’t be much gaming time once he arrives.

Then again, maybe I just had a lazy day. I think that happens to most people now and again. Besides, it wasn’t all bad. While playing, I put on an audio book, and I finished listening to “Nobody Knows My Name” by James Baldwin. It was an interesting collection of essays and would love to go into more detail, but perhaps I’ll leave that discussion for another post.

Till then, it’s your turn. Do you ever have “lazy days?” If so, what do you typically do?