The Pla‘Nnos’ Plan
Got nothing to do this weekend? Relax, having a free schedule is actually the coolest thing right now. Cosmo’s Caelia Corse explains why...
There I was, making communal kitchen conversation on a Friday morning as I dig into kiwi fruit—office workers will be familiar with the age-old script: “I’m excited. What are you doing this weekend? Are you going out tonight?” These lines are invariably followed by the verbatim vice-versa, come Monday morning: “I’m tired. What did you do on Saturday? Don’t look at my outfit; I’ve had a crazy weekend...”
Recently, however, this longestablished kitchen discourse has undergone a serious makeover. Everywhere, women are ditching over-committed weekends in favour of gleefully announcing they have ‘no plans’, and feeling fantastic for it.
It wasn’t too long ago that having nothing to do on a weekend indicated your status as a social pariah; it was far from exciting, nor anything to exclaim to co-workers with glee. But there’s been a seismic shift in what is considered a ‘cool’ way to spend your Saturday and
Sunday. It’s almost as if someone had overheard Kate Moss tell the Primrose Hill crew she’d be cleaning the house and watching DVDS of 24 all weekend. Yep, suddenly ‘just chilling’ is the latest trend being ‘tried on’ by women everywhere. And guess what? It fits.
For me, sending panicked texts to pad out the hours between a Saturday mani and Sunday lunch with mom is a thing of the past. I’ve strategically planned to do nothing on the weekends for some time now and the reason is simple: I’m so tired from weekday life, I’ve had to learn to say no. For example, do I want to go out until 2am, spend the equivalent of a pair of shoes I’ve been lusting after on drinks and dinner, and feel like an arse the next day? No, but thanks for asking...can we do coffee instead?
Don’t get me wrong, I still have fun, but these days, fun is a Friday night drink, backed up with brunch and a relaxed day with friends. Over-committing once made me feel popular, as if my life was full. But, like many women, I’ve made a new commitment to give myself a break. And my life is ‘fuller’ because I now have more energy to enjoy it.
Monday rolls around and, creature of habit that I am, I’m eating my kiwi again, chatting with colleagues about the movies we saw, yoga classes we took, and the outfits that resulted from the soul-lifting amount of washing we did. Doesn’t it just make you want to...do nothing?