As we continue our search for a travel trailer, dealers usually ask us to check a box and identify ourselves as a buyer. Joe usually checks the box labeled, “weekend warrior.”
I tried to pinpoint who coined the term, “Weekend Warrior.” Apparently, though, the author was too busy to take credit.
It makes sense. After all, a “weekend warrior,” refers to someone who participates in an activity, “only in their spare time.”
But what in the world do they mean by “spare” time? I’m a wife, mom, sister, daughter, children’s minister, shipping manager, writer, YouTuber and friend. At first I assumed by “spare time,” they meant time that’s additional or left over after one has fulfilled all their commitments. However, in my life, the promise of spare time can be like dangling a ball in front of Cinderella: 1. You can go after you get your chores done. 2. You’ll never get all these chores done.
Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Better-Find-Me-A-Fairy-Godmother.
For years, I moped, (not mopped), around with a broom in one hand and a breadstick in the other. Sadly, a horse drawn carriage was never sent to give me a night off. So, I consoled myself – evening after evening – with junk food pity parties. After hearing plenty of midnight bells, I successfully turned myself into a pumpkin.
The keto lifestyle has certainly liberated me from a pantry seemingly stocked by an evil stepmother. But, an outward transformation is only the first half of Happily Every After. What we don’t see in the Disney cartoon is how Cinderella transformed her schedule.
While measuring trailer cabinets on an rv sales lot, I decided the king’s aide must have helped Cinderella make the transition from cinder sweeper to lady of leisure. But, I don’t even know anybody with a monocle.
Joe was looking at a backup camera when we noticed the spare tire on the unit had exploded in the Florida heat.
That’s the second spare tire we’ve lost today, the salesperson lamented. The mechanics check on the trailer tires regularly, but not the spares. They just inflate them a bunch and leave them. They don’t realize they haven’t properly allowed for pressure. And, when the heat turns up, the spares swell and burst.
It was then I remembered another definition of “spare.” A spare is an item kept in case another item of the same type is lost, broken, or worn out. And my “spare time,” (the time I had allotted for a burnt out schedule), looked a lot like that exploded tire.
Self-care is suppose to be something I carry with me. But, if I don’t put rest on the checklist with responsibilities, it won’t be something I can count on. And, I know what happens when I feel tired, overdone, and stressed out…I kick off both glass slippers and head straight for the banquet table.
Suddenly, the “weekend warrior,” term made more sense. If I want some “spare time,” I’m going to have to fight for it. But, just like budgeting for better quality meats and non-inflammatory oils are worth the investment, budgeting for “spare time” is worth the investment as well.
This week, check your spare time. Is it in good shape? If not, change out your schedule. Because, life is no fairy tale. It’s the dream that you warrior, (not wish), that comes true.
