"chronic"- "aling" a lazy Friday

When you live close to the ocean, cleaning your windows is a bit of nuisance simply because of the salt in the air, which makes it a bit of an ongoing palaver. I know someone who would brazenly tell you that she needs to take a couple of days off to clean her windows - I shouldn’t bad mouth her, she’s family.

The idea of taking a Ferris every once in a while must feel like a real corporate caper, particularly to the average blue collared worker. You call in, cough, and make a malingering excuse and viola! The next couple of days are immediately available for forwarding your own personal agenda. But like most capers the general idea is not to get caught in the act.

We have 36 days on a three year cycle by law for the purposes of wellness but we seldom use it unless we are in hospital. I am lucky enough to be able to work from home and smart enough to know that nobody will pick up the slack if I am not in, so the notion of a “sickie” isn’t that alluring.

Today it’s very easy to get “sick”; you simply have to listen out for what’s going around and then you catch that cold or that bug. I recently got a text from a member of my project team which said, “Not going to be in today, got da flu.” And there wasn’t a ting dat I could do about it.

I’ve got an upset stomach, so I have decided to work from home, which is sensible and potentially less embarrassing, although I still need to guestimate some numbers before the afternoon is out, so it isn't entirely a Ferris, I don’t have the momentary guilt nor do I have any inclination to clean my windows.

TG tis F.

A Ferris is the slang used for a sick day – it comes from the movie, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, starring a young Matthew Broderick. It’s a classic from the 80ties directored by John Hughes, who influenced a generation.