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What’s Your Favourite Little Treat in Daily Life?

NYC, Greenwich Village, 2012
NYC, Greenwich Village, 2012

Serious question: how do you have fun? How do you treat yourself?

I suspect that your life is as busy as mine. Whether we want it or not, we all settle into a routine usually revolving around work, school or family. Get up, perform tasks as expected, take care of basic needs, sleep and repeat. And while we all sigh with relief every Friday evening, the weekend doesn’t usually turn into a magical two-day interlude where life gives you a break (not to mention that many of us work on weekends…). Chores still have to be performed, meals have to be prepared and forty-eight hours isn’t long enough to really refresh your body and spirit.

Gosh, I’m depressing.

Okay, it’s not all bad. Hopefully, you are surrounded by the people you love and you are doing something that you enjoy.

It’s just that… sometimes you need a “treat”. Hey, that’s why there is a thriving entertainment industry, right? Some people like to go watch a movie, while others enjoy a good meal in a restaurant. What matters is the thrill, the idea of doing something new, something fun, something selfish, something special you wouldn’t do every day.

I have a series of small treats I use throughout the week or the day to just keep me going. I love having my daily cup at Starbucks—I sit in the crowded coffee and I read a few chapters of a novel for twenty minutes or so. I get the effect of the caffeine and a selfish moment where I can ignore the blinking light on my phone and focus on fictional characters who are facing challenges and solving them beautifully (unless I’m reading a really dark novel).

At home, I like to take a moment for mini pampering sessions. I put on music or a video on my laptop and I pluck my eyebrows, wax my legs (I know it doesn’t sound like a treat, but I love the result!) or buff my nails. If I have a bit of time and money, I love getting a pedicure. It’s still a relatively cheap treat in Canada (about $30) and you do nothing but sit in these massage chairs and let someone else do the work. My ultimate favourite treat is getting a massage, but they are expensive in Canada, so I only book one when I feel rich (and apparently, the last time I felt rich was… a year ago?)

Generally speaking, I seek out comfort or novelty. Anything to break the routine. Finding a new shortcut, a new store or a new neighbourhood. Trying new foods at the supermarket. Getting a new book. Strangely, I don’t care much for shopping—I find the process tedious, although I enjoy finding a good deal, for instance, an affordable pair of jeans that fits perfectly. Yes, a unicorn, I know.

Finally, I tend to find satisfaction in completing “artistic” projects. For instance, I love taking pictures on a theme, editing them and publishing them. Or I like putting the final full stop at the end of a blog article that flows well. I enjoy arranging printed shots on the fridge, editing a document or finding clothes that match perfectly (although my definition of “match perfectly” can be questionable at times…).

But I need new ideas. I need more treats in my life. So tell me… what do you do for fun?

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Zhu

French woman in English Canada.

Exploring the world with my camera since 1999, translating sentences for a living, writing stories that may or may not get attention.

Firm believer that nobody is normal... and it’s better this way.

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