Fast Day Nap

This is not a reference to the speed, time, or length of the nap...should I have hyphenated?

“They couldn't have ordered up a nicer day, I'll say that for them”, says a male spectator in Best in Show, Christopher Guest’s classic mockumentary.¹ “I woke up this morning. I was so glad,” responds a female spectator. It’s all in the delivery, but I can tell you it’s very funny. And also true. It’s nice to wake up in the morning.

That doesn’t mean that the day ahead is going to be a terrific one, but it beats the alternative. Today for example, I was very happy to wake up, but not so thrilled about what was in store: the continuation of a 25 hour fast that ends at 9:01pm tonight. The self-sacrifice² is for the Jewish holiday of Tisha Ba’av, which commemorates the date where many terrible things have befallen the Jewish people,³ most notable among them is the destruction of both Holy Temples. So as I sit here typing, my head hurts, my feet stink and I don’t love Jesus;⁴ and I’m generally crabby and annoyed. I can do without food or water, but the no caffeine is a real bummer, man.

Except…no caffeine meant that I easily slipped into a flex at 9:30am. And no caffeine meant that I easily slipped into my typical afternoon snooze. A flex and a double in the same day? I am so glad I woke up this morning.

1. I think I read somewhere that Guest does not like the term mockumentary, since he doesn’t believe he is mocking his subjects, but rather, shining a light on them. If that’s the case, good to know, but I’m still calling it a mockumentary.

2. Including no showers, deodorant, teeth brushing, etc. Unlike the colonoscopy, you don’t need all the details.

3. Either coincidentally or by design

4. But dammit I respect him; also, shout out to my Parrothead fans.