Why Wait For Friday? I Activate My 'TGIF' Chill Time Any Day

Blame it on the blood moon. Blame it on Max Verstappen. But the weekend was a blur! Kinda passed in 1:13:24.325! “Made everyone look a bit stupid,” quoting Toto out of context a bit here, but what the heck? How though? 'Cause I don’t feel weekend-ed at all (yawn!) – No R&R, no meal prep, no extra Zzzz, no catch-ups, no laundry, and no hugging the neighbourhood tree for my weekly milligrams of oxytocin. Manic Monday just lassoed us all into work mode without warning. 

But I refuse to take all this lying down. I am gonna be all Gen Z and claim my Friday vibe right now! The idea itself sounds “simply lovely.” Monza Lando may cringe at Tuscany Lando going “It’s Friday again, then Saturday, Sunday, what?...” but that’s the vibe I crave. It’s called Dopamine Re-Edit for a reason, right? 

Psychologically speaking, the 'Thank God It's Friday' vibe hits different, for it is rooted in humans’ need to break free from routine at regular intervals. Friday is the legit OG, and scores over Saturday and Sunday for the loaded anticipatory pleasure it carries. This EQ variable conditions the brain to “feel good.”  

There’s actual DOW (days of the week) Mood Study data claiming Friday sees “more smiles” than any other day. The mere thought of Friday, aka fun, freedom, food, friends, family, makes it a FriYay! Imagine there’s a whole new word for the feels.

Or as someone once said, “Friday is like a superhero that always arrives just in time to stop me from savagely beating one of my coworkers with a keyboard.” We all feel you, bruh! Either way, Friday fills you with hope and a sense of adventure. And that’s why I need that Friday rescue. Like NOW. So what if it’s not Friday yet?

Every day can be 'FriYay'

I do not have the bandwidth to wait for the loop to land on the real Friday, so I am going to curate my own TGIF downtime! Watch me, here’s the simple trick –

1. I am sleeping in: Nothing compares to a sleep-in. No argument there. Now imagine if it’s impromptu. No alarm. No doorbell. No rushed mornings. And the most important – No guilt! Can’t wait for burnout blues to hit for me to realise I just needed some more sleep. That’s self-care 101 in a world where “compassion fatigue” is a hard reality.
   You've got to figure out your limits and align your rest. Mini-breaks are good for ‘normal work days,’ but they have to be mega at some point. That’s the TGIF vibe. 
2. I’ll shower, when I’ll shower: Picture this – cosy jammies, cool breeze, kadak adrak chai in hand, monsoon clouds flouncing in the sky and every ounce of mindfulness directed to the moment. Complete joy of missing out, only enjoying the moment to the fullest.
   Absolute presence in the here and now. Just observing. Just breathing. Not letting the thought monkeys climb the famed “slippery pole” of overthinking. If this isn’t real-life nirvana, what is? Don’t have to “get ready”, don’t have to “go” anywhere, don’t have to “do” anything – just “being” is enough.
3. I’ll pamper my palate: All that philosophical food for thought automatically leads to gourmet thought for food. And I always say this to anyone willing to listen: Do yourself the biggest favour and learn to make food that makes you happy, that makes your heart sing. It’s a top-of-the-charts life skill.
   On a day like today – all monsoony-Western Ghat vibes, it’ll be crisp kanda bhajji for breakfast. Yes, flip the script, it’s your life! Home-made hara-bhara kabab (need to hit my protein goals) and imli chutney for lunch while ogling Oppa in the King The Land re-run. Dinner will therefore be some K-drama-inspired twist to my multi-grain noodles with bean sprouts. Chincha mashita!
4. I’ll break all the rules: Ovio already. But even the little rules, lines, boundaries that we end up inadvertently drawing around ourselves all week in our professional bot avatar need to be kept aside sometimes. Talk like this. Walk like this. Dress like this. Think like this.
   Enough. Not today. Today’s organic. Let it unfold. Surprise yourself. Get creative. Phone a friend at 2 p.m. and see if she picks up. If she does, that’s your cue. Chat away. Weekday be damned. I just did, and it felt out-of-this-world cathartic. Go for a walk at 4 pm. Plog. Sit in your verandah and sing into space. Be yourself. If it brings you peace, do it (If you know, you know). 
5. I’ll revel in me-time: To the extent that the first thing I did was cancel the maid. Yes, you heard me right; cancel the maid. Me-time means me-only-time. No interference. No outside noise. No instructions. No forced interaction. It’s that perfect extroverted-introverted zone that separates loneliness from solitude/alone-time. That’s when silence speaks – soothing, soft, spiritual, eloquent.
   Personally, I know I’ll read, my TBR’s full of books on life, libraries, cats and coffee with a mega Asian bias. If I read, I’ll probably write too; it just flows naturally for me. It could be an article or a blog, or just my journal. Penning thoughts is sensory release. Especially with my glittery pens. My favourite nervous system regulation technique. Wrapped up probably with a late evening saunter around the neighbourhood, ear-pods “killing it girl” as I give a friendly nod to the regulars. 

And so the day goes by. My curate "Friday", which can be any day of the week. If I say it’s Friday, it’s Friday. My Friday. A day to connect with myself like I mean it. A day I take rest to a whole new level. A day in sync with the rhythm of my mind, my body, my soul.

A day of unlocking possibilities. A day I end with immense gratitude for the peace it brought me – Thank God It’s Friday! May today be the Fridayest Friday that ever Fridayed, y'all!

Views expressed by the author are their own.