Coffee and Air Conditioning

I think my napping habits are healthy. You might think I’m depressed.

Only one of those opinions matters.

I am curious, however, where napping got a bad rap? I love naps. I’d take a nap every single day if that were an option. And working from home these days, it often is. Sure, I’ve got non-nap strategies. More coffee. A walk outside. But when I start feeling that pull of exhaustion, I often carve out a quiet moment to unplug my brain.

A long time ago in a galaxy far far away, as in when I was married, naps on Saturday or Sunday became a point of irritation. The conversations about them were a case study in passive-aggressive manipulation attempts, which I didn’t buy into.

“Sure, dishes need to be taken out of the dishwasher, I know, but I need 30-minutes.”

“And the laundry, and the lawn, and boy scouts, and …”

Yadda yadda yadda. I could no longer hear what she was saying. I waved my hand over my head and turned to the bedroom. The micro-fractures had started crumbling our relationship. The power and control plays were not working. I was not responding to the manipulation. Nope. I’m tired, I’m taking a fkn nap. I never said it, of course.

I can say it now. “I’m taking a fkn nap. I’d love you to join me…” There’s no one to hear me, at this point, but I’m still taking self-care seriously. The string of three-digit heat has kept my afternoons mostly inside and my exercise only in the early morning hours. Naps happen as needed.

Read more Short-Short Stories from John.