It’s Labor Day… Kick Back….Ahhhhhh, Irony
It’s Labor Day in the US… Labour Day in Canada…. and how do we celebrate? By not going to work. As a big ol’ fan of the oxymoron, I appreciate that irony.
Rosa Say of Talking Story has a new essay on the value of a strong work ethic. I couldn’t agree more, although she uses native Hawaiian to make her point. It raises two questions:
1) What ever happened to work ethic?
2) When did I start talking like my old man and how do I stop?
One of the things I mean to investigate in the next few months is the paradox: the people who listen to this show tend to have great work ethics- after all you’ve taken control of your own learning and professional development, which implies you’re probably not the person in your workplace who needs most of the development…. and the people who need the help more sure ain’t listening to the likes of me and don’t think they need the help…..and on it goes in swirling eddies of irony and madness.
Take the day off and get a fresh start in the morning, gang.
September 5th, 2006 at 7:02 am
And on this holiday, lookie who’s working hard here to give me some linklove! You’re a gem Wayne.
And do you really talk like your Dad? Your house must’ve been a hoot.
Pretending not to work right along with you,
Rosa
September 11th, 2006 at 9:25 pm
The Labo(u)r day paradox gave me a big grin this morning. It’s right up there with the May Bank Holiday (Workers Day) here in the UK.
And I spent a couple of hours on Saturday in my home office finishing up a report for this morning.
Q
September 11th, 2006 at 11:32 pm
Quiller, glad I could bring a smile to your over-worked mug. If studies are correct, people who work in the City of London are the least content in the English Speaking World….thoughts?
September 12th, 2006 at 6:53 pm
Interesting, Wayne. I think that study must refer to the ’square mile’ that is the financial heart of London, where all the stockbrokers, newspapers and investment bankers are based. Least content, though? I’m not sure about that.
London as a whole is a great city and I love it here. Judging by the number of Australians and South Africans living in London, the locals are not the only ones who think so.
Speaking of South Africans, if you class Johannesburg as being within the English-speaking world, as someone who has lived there, I’d bet they would be a lot less content than Londoners.