Me Time

We were intended to work six days out of seven but even on that seventh there are appointments to keep.  Most of us have a good measure of structure into nearly all our days, from when the clock radio buzzes, departure time for work whether we arrive on time or not, to the volunteer organization committee meeting we need to attend at the end of the day to a reasonably structured lights out so we can start over again the next day.  Even our vacations structure our time to a great extent with airline schedules and cruise dining times.

Into each day on my Franklin Planner I include some Me Time, a respite with no agenda, no catch-up and even no particular time to partake of it.  More recently, as Shabbat services became a diminishingly attractive destination, I've tried leaving that seventh day schedule free, admitting that I time it from Saturday wake-up to Saturday sleep rather than the more traditional lichtbentschen to havdalah.  There are some constraints to the daylight hours, it being Shabbos, so no computer, cell phone, writing, shopping malls or similar stuff that would be part of a work week and can easily be postponed until after sunset.  So what have I actually been doing with this unstructured time?  I sleep later, often go to the library in the afternoon, play with the cats a little, read something Jewish, watch TV of the on-demand type, read a few days worth of News-Journals.  After dark, I will go out to Trader Joes or Christmas Tree Shop or watch more TV.  Productive?  Rarely.  Relaxing? Sometimes.  Should it be allocated some day other than shabbos?  Can make a case for it, though there are usually chores to do on Sunday.