it's strange

  Went for a brief visit to my son's house in Oneonta, New York. It's always nice to get away, even when you're retired, and there isn't much to get away from. It's something I've always snickered about, people taking vacations when they don't have a job. The reason they are not working isn't important, could be like me, simply retired, so what am I taking a vacation from? But it's nice to get away and see something new. We stayed a couple days and that's enough. Then everyone goes back to the normal routine of living. It's comforting to see and know for yourself that all is well. 

  While I was away, I did watch the news on television. It's always strange to watch different news casts. The local news is especially strange as you don't know all the local references they use. It's amazing though how different national news channels can be as well. It goes beyond political leanings and into attitudes. Being in upstate New York I heard a lot of references to Canada. Just general things that caught my attention but I'm certain to the locals it was nothing unusual. The pictures of the maps were of course different. It was like being in a geography class in some ways. The shape is familiar, but the details are surprising. 

  There was a story that I was listening to about a four-day work week. Several companies in Canada had experimented with that as well as some in New York. The news was reporting glowing reviews of that proposal. It was better in every way. More productivity, less absenteeism, and higher morale. It was just better in every way. And every weekend was a three-day weekend. It was even better for those working at home! My takeaway from that was that people are now working for time off. That is the goal. The objective is to have more leisure time.

  I realize I'm not the first one to think about this. There was a time when we worked to make a living by doing what we enjoyed. Now I know that wasn't true in every case, in all situations. What I'm thinking about are those with a trade or skill. The farmer loves to farm his land and that is his life. Sure, farmers want to take a day off, enjoy some leisure time, but a few hours in the evening or a Sunday picnic was enough. The carpenter took pleasure and pride in his work. The shopkeeper was like that, proud of his shop and pleased to serve his customers and his neighbors. It was a satisfaction. Fishermen, farmers and tradesmen. It was the satisfaction in their livelihood, their occupation that carried them through hard times. 

  Today it seems like there are many that are working a job that they have no real pride in, no bragging rights associated with that. I've never heard anyone say, wow is that guy good at accounting. Or man can he drive a forklift! There are many occupations today that I have no idea what it is they do. I wonder if you can do that job at home what it is that you're doing. Must be paperwork of some kind. I wonder what kind of satisfaction you could get from that beyond the immediate company recognizing your efforts. What I mean is, a cabinetmaker will have an object that others can admire and recognize his skill in creating. The farmer will have crops. I've always worked with my hands. There was always the satisfaction of repairing what was broken, building what was new, or solving a problem. The results were always tangible. I did have a short period of time when I was engaged in doing paperwork. That was while I was in the Navy. Without trying to explain all that involved it was centered on documents and documentation of spare parts and maintenance procedures. Boring, boring, boring! A thankless job. No one wanted to follow the procedures as they were written, no one wanted that maintenance schedule, and it was just all a waste of time in my opinion. A formality. Less time at that and more time off would have been welcomed! 

  Now four-day work weeks sound like a great idea. We can all have a three-day weekend. Things is, that is going to cost. We are all going to need a bit more disposable income. Whether we are pursuing our hobby at home or taking those getaways, it is going to cost. Entertainment is usually expensive. Doesn't matter all that much what you are doing for that entertainment. It is going to cost. We are going to have to work more to earn a little extra to afford all that time off. And there is always this old adage to consider, idle hands do the devil's work! That was something I heard from my grandmother. That was usually followed by this advice, find something useful to do, something constructive. You know much of that is what we call "crafting" today. Grandma didn't knit an Afghan just for the fun of it, it was to stay warm come winter. Repairs around the house fell in that category as well. Fixin' and mendin'. The job was living. Vacations were an escape from the real world. A couple weeks was usually more than enough, sometimes too long. Cost a lot of money to be on vacation and the job (of living) wasn't going away, best to get back to it. Yes, vacations and days off were a distraction for a short time and welcomed. Seems like the goal now is to stay on vacation.  You only work to afford time off. Strange world isn't it.