by Tim Shea

The other day I informed my boss that I planned to take a Friday off that was a traditional day of rest for most Americans. The venerable Veterans Day, of course the only real veteran I know is my grandfather and in his mentally decaying state probably didn’t even know it was November. So to honor him and his fellow heroes I went shopping and to dinner like a good American.

But what struck me as so offensive and wrong was my boss’s response to my request. Since I supposedly don’t have a typical 9 to 5, I am a commission only contract player for a evil fortune 100 company, there was nothing really he could do to prevent me from taking that Friday or any other Friday for that matter. However, he asked me why I wanted the day all the same. I told him that I wanted to spend a little quality time with those I love. A facetious answer no doubt, but screw him! After all this is my life.

His sarcastic chide remark “life is full of decisions” burned me up! Behind this guise of managerial efficiency sits a tool of capitalism. I could feel it in my bones, that this sorry man truly believed that his family and friends would better appreciate him if he gave his every available moment to the pursuit of money for their enjoyment rather than spend a little quality time with them. I mean time is money right? Or is that it’s free for all of us?

I don’t remember ever writing a check to father time.

But anyway, I left his office and got in my car and in my hour and half long pilgrimage back to my home, my mind wandered (as it often does). To thoughts of one of my friends who was fearing her up coming drug test for her job. A great, capable, and productive individual who had never failed to give her all to those who signed her checks. I puzzled over how a company could intrude into her private life. I could understand if she was cooking rock on her desk! That might actually interfere with her daily work load. But if she elected to toke a little pot rather than kick back a few beers on a Friday night to relax after a hard week, what right does any company have to test her. Isn’t it the sole occupation of any free standing business to generate wealth through hard work not worry if the person answering the phones might test positive for THC, why spend money on a test, where is the return on investment for the company? What study has ever postulated the concept that THC= Bad employee, fire immediately, you’ll save money in the long run! If she weren’t qualified for the job why hire her in the first place? Do we not trust a resume or references anymore? Or how about months or even years of proven hard work and productivity? But none the less we all prescribe to drug tests as a fact of life in the working world. Just like working on the weekends or staying late or asking for a day off.

I mean shit for me the day would not be complete without at least a three phone calls from my boss and at least one on Saturday. Perhaps the only day we can truly escape from work is on whatever Sabbath day we subscribe too. We can’t make them work on a holy day they might sue us! But hey we could entice them with some more money! Maybe we should create a belief system in which everyday is holy or special just because it could be our last! Right, I mean everyone who has ever faced death and reflected on theirs lives probably wished they had spent more time at work! When did we lose the power? I mean for Christ sake if enough people refused to work the whole system would break down.

Now it sounds like I am promoting unionization and the popular response to the union boogie man is that union destroyed this country. Really? Isn’t the working world constituted of the people, by the people, and for the people…why do we hand our liberty to make free and conscious decisions to others for money? What if we just stopped only for a few days and remind our bosses and our customers that we all want to have a little more freedom of choice and liberty to do those things which truly have meaning and value in our lives.

Maybe the thing we need to have is a bill of rights to protect us not only from the government but the companies that impose their rules, regulations, and moral doctrines upon us. What if we honored all of our hard work with a little more appreciation? Life is full of decisions and perhaps the only real freedom we have is that we can make our own minds up whenever we want. We may choose to work for the money we need to pay our bills and buy the things we need or would like to have. But we all probably need a little more balance in our lives, after all what we buy with that money we work so hard for forces someone else just like yourself to work to serve you. We are all part of this vicious cycle but we have the power to stop it if we should choose or at lease control it.

It’s just a thought because I don’t want Big Brother to win!