My friend Lindsey falls into the former group. I don't think I've ever seen her not "ready." I believe that every morning, regardless of what she does or does not have scheduled that day, she gets up, showers, puts on cute clothes, and does her makeup and hair beautifully. She is always "ready." She is not the only one. My friend Trudy also fits in this group. Her theory is, "I want to be 'ready' in case something comes up." I had a friend in Mt. Vernon, also a member of the "ready no matter what" group. She not only got herself "ready" every day, but she insisted that her kids do the same. I remember her saying to them, "You have to get 'ready' for your day."
I am not a member of that group. I am queen of the "ready only if necessary" group. Is this bad? I heard a talk recently, where the speaker insisted that if we want to feel good about ourselves, it's critical that we get up and get "ready" every morning, regardless of what the day has in store for us. She maintained that not doing so could compromise our self-esteem. Hmmm. I wonder. I think my self-esteem is okay. For me, lounging in pajamas, with no shower, make-up, or styled hair, is the epitome of luxury. When I was a little girl, my mom and I would plan such days. "I need a pajama day," one of us would say, and we would plot out a time when we could remain in pajamas the entire day. No, we didn't do this often. Of course not! I had school and other activities. She had various responsibilities. But it was a lovely occasional treat.
Shulamith and I will sometimes plan such a day, and I love those days just as much as when I was little. Apart from those special days, however, I'm still a member of the "ready only if necessary" group. When I get up in the morning, I don't do anything to get ready until an hour before I need to leave to go somewhere. Sometimes I even wait until 45 minutes before, but then I have to rush, which I don't like. On the three days a week that I teach, my first class begins at 11:10. I leave home around 10:45, which means I get in the shower at 9:45. Before that, I lounge happily in pajamas and do whatever. Housework, cooking, paper grading, blogging, reading, etc. all can be done just fine in the comfort of sweet PJ's.
Not only that, but I love pajamas so much that the second I get home from wherever I went, I immediately switch back into pajamas. Even if I know I'm going somewhere else later, it's worth it to change and then change back. That's how much I like to be in pajamas. But sometimes life takes an unexpected turn, and I have to leave immediately with no warning. What then?
It's very bad. One recent example was the morning I received the terrifying phone call telling me Seth had been hit by a car while walking to school. Of course, I gave no thought to appearances and instead grabbed my big "Montana coat" from my closet and threw it on over my PJ's as I bolted out the door. This coat is not attractive. Let me be clear about that. It is so long that it goes all the way down to my ankles, and it has no shape whatsoever, just straight up and down. Shulamith hates it; in fact, one time she put it on just to demonstrate how bad it is: "See, this is what you look like when you wear this!" But it is wonderfully warm, and I couldn't have survived those freezing Montana winters without it. And it comes in really handy when you need to be covered up from neck to toes, such as when you decide to venture out into the world wearing pajamas, as I did that morning.
Admittedly, I've used it as a pajama cover-up on other occasions. Three days ago on New Year's Eve, we decided impulsively to go to Cheesecake Factory for dessert at 10:30. It had been a quiet day (read: I didn't need to go anywhere, so of course I had not showered, dressed, or done hair and make-up). Yep, I really did it! I put on my Montana coat, and off we went. Keep in mind that living here in Utah, the chances I would encounter someone I knew were incredibly low. Moreover, I'm pretty sure no one would recognize me anyway, wearing this giant coat, bed-head hair, and zero makeup. This worked so well that a couple days later I decided to try it again. I didn't have any significant place to go; I just needed a couple items from the grocery store. Donned in the big coat over pajamas, I headed out to the store, and I'm pretty sure no one was the wiser. Seriously, all you can see is 'coat' when I'm wearing that thing. Well, here, let me show you:
So now I'm wondering about all you other friends out there. Into which group do you belong? Ready? Or not?
I think the secret is that we all need a Montana coat and then no ne would know whether we are "ready" or not!
ReplyDeleteI agree, Patty. Isn't it the best idea every...at least in the winter months. I suppose one would look a bit odd out running around in such a coat when it's 85 degrees outside.
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