Guilt-free laziness

My boyfriend and I have an arrangement where I "live" at his apartment over the weekend. This works for me, because he is borrowing my couches (bookshelves, pots and pans, etc.) while I save up money for my first house. Furniture aside, this arrangement is beneficial for him because I, being OCD over clutter, pick up his dirty clothes, deliver Tuesday night's macaronni dish from the desk to the dishwasher, and let our new dog - Diego - in and out while he is at work on Saturday.


Back in August, when I first began teaching 10th grade, I would always bring lesson plans and homework to grade home with me on the weekend. This idea was quickly nixed - I don't get paid enough to work overtime on weekends, and there is nothing I can do at home that can't be put off until the kids are watching a movie or taking a test. This philosophy, that work and personal projects will always wait for you, is the justification I use to spend Saturday's laying on my couch and watching home decorating shows.


In former years I suffered from a case of "inactivity guilt." Sometimes it still sneaks up on me. Essentially, this is the guilt that makes a person believe they should always be accomplishing something, and lounging moments should be few and far between.


So today, in celebration of a lazy, cloudy Saturday, I want to compile a list of reasons why doing nothing can be a beautiful thing:



*Most people do not get the recommended eight hours of sleep a night. While you can't "make up" lost sleep, you can re-charge yourself by treating your weekends like a mini-vacation - a time for much needed R&R!


*Stress can change people's attitudes and make them bitter and/or mean, especially towards people they are close to. Giving yourself a rest can make you a nicer and more enjoyable person.


*Laying on the couch is economical - it doesn't cost any money! If you were out at the mall or cruising Home Depot looking for projects, that would probably cost a lot of your hard earned dollars.


*Resting decreases anxiety. Walking into work on Monday with less anxiety will make you a better, more productive employee.


*When you lift weights, you tear your muscles and you need to rest in order for them to grow back stronger. Perhaps it is the same for your brain - you work it hard over the week, and then by letting it rest on Saturday, it functions faster and more efficiently on Sunday.


*When are the yogi's wrong? Shavasana, or corpse pose, is often used to both begin and end a good yoga workout. Shavasana involves letting all the muscles in the body untense and relax, and is utilized to quiet and calm the mind. Is it a coincidence that "shavasana" and "Saturday" are linguistically similar and both signal a start and an end? I think not. Untense away.