This past weekend I did nothing. Of course, that is not true. But New Yorkers don’t always say what they mean. When New Yorkers say they did nothing, what it really means is that they had a couple hours specifically carved out where they were not running from one event to the next. And on those rare unicorn occasions, it is glorious.
This past weekend, here’s what I really did:
Friday: Worked a full day, grocery shopped and cooked dinner, then watched Moana with my boyfriend. He LOVED it. Maybe because he’s an emoji and it’s an animated movie, and birds of a feather flock together.
Saturday: Went to breakfast in Greenwich Village with my boyfriend and 3 friends, took a few photographs of my food, then meandered around and said bye to my BFF who was traveling back to Australia. Then did 5 loads of laundry.
Sunday: Taught 2 hours of fitness classes in Brooklyn while my brother was a participant. Took the local train there and back because, weekends in NYC, transit is literally the worst (this is an activity in and of itself). Went to lunch at an Indian buffet. Third best on the Upper West Side according to foursquare! It tasted like second best. Went shopping at CVS, where I saved $25 in coupons. Beware Extreme Couponing, I’m coming for you.
As you can see, this was not, indeed, nothing, but compared to a usual NYC weekend, it is incredibly tame. Almost every New Yorker can tell you when the next time they have nothing planned is, and they generally will be very happy about it, looking forward to it, sometimes counting down they days until it happens. One of my favorite comedians, John Mulaney, has a bit specifically about this. He says, if you ever ask an adult what they did over the weekend and they did nothing, their faces LIGHT UP. It’s so true! My coworkers asked me this morning how was weekend was, and I regaled them with tales of my binge-watching Jane the Virgin, and sang them a few lines from my new favorite soundtrack, Moana. Ok, maybe I didn’t do that last part, but I did hum some of it on the subway! Those songs are seriously catchy. Thanks Lin Manuel Miranda.
Doing nothing is a luxury that I cannot often take advantage of. There are things to do, people to see, food to eat, and the feeling of FOMO is so real. When I first moved in with my boyfriend, I thought I would be running out of the house at every possible moment to get away from him (no offense babe). But in reality, I have found that I am more and more likely to turn down invitations. Why? Well first of all, I’m poor. Thanks student loans. But even more, I already have someone to keep me company at home! And after nearly 7 years of go-go-go in New York, I am ready to slowww down. Don’t get me wrong, I am still going to go out to drunch every once in a while, but now that I am 30, I need a full day to recover. Also, sometimes it is the most luxurious feeling to find out that Pocahontas is streaming on Hulu and you can watch it over and over again. With the closed captioning on, it’s basically Disney Karaoke. You’re welcome for that Saturday serenade, neighbors.
I hope all of you guys had a fantastic weekend filled with lots of fun activities. Or not. Because sometimes that’s better.