Are You Working?

Author

AliceShiki

『Ms. Tree』『Magical Girl of Love and Justice』, Female
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I heard that phrase today... I heard that phrase multiple times... It's such a frustrating phrase to hear, really.

I'm currently staying at my mom's house... I was at my room and I was on my laptop... I work on my laptop. I work on my laptop at a really flexible schedule, so basically any day and any hour can be a work day or a work hour.

So... Mom comes in to my room and asks me to do some chores, nothing too big, but it would consume a small bit of time... But uhn... I really didn't want to go do them, and when she noticed it from my obvious reaction, she was like, "are you working?"

No. I was not working. I was talking to a friend about personal problems... I was doing something that's a lot more important than work, honestly... I wouldn't mind stopping work for a bit to do chores (though it would still be a bother, since it would break my concentration and stuff), but I absolutely do mind stopping a talk about personal problems with a friend to do chores.

I told mom that this just "wasn't a good time." She luckily kinda caught the drift and left me be, but like... Geez, why ask "are you working?" as the first thing when I show any reluctance to go do chores? Why does it have to be work? Is work the only important thing in my life? Is work the only thing that allows me to skip/delay chores?

... There are things that are more important than work, okay? I don't... I don't need to be working to be busy. I can be busy with other things. Other important things, things that matter a lot more than work to me... Why does the question have to be "are you working?" I don't get it... Can't she just ask "is right now no good?" or "are you busy?" There are definitely better questions to ask, why "are you working?" why does it have to be like that?

It's just so frustrating... I am working somewhat regularly now, okay? I don't need to be asked if I am working at any possible occasion... I just want to have some time for myself when I need time for myself... Is it that hard to acknowledge I can have other important things in my life?

.. She probably didn't mean anything by her question, she just wanted to know if I was busy with something meaningful I guess... It's just that mine and her definition of meaningful vary a lot it seems... And that bothers me a lot... *sighs*

I hate this question... Though I'm glad that even without me saying anything about what I was busy with, she still just left me be. I appreciated this much.
My relationship with my mom isn't good, but... She has some nice moments, I guess.

Comments

    1. Hirame May 26, 2021
      Are you busy means you are going to make them busy~
      So ppl are like...
      Eeeeh...

      But yeah, you need to look at it from viewpoint of previous generation.
      They arent used to modern technology as much and worked most of the time at work or at home.
      You saw if someone was just relaxing or went out to have fun.
      Harder to tell for us modern peeps.
      AliceShiki likes this.
    2. AliceShiki May 20, 2021
      *hugs @mir-chan* That's something I would have never thought of myself, perhaps because I work by myself, so I don't have many opportunities to think of this kind of thing~

      Good thoughts though, they make sense for me~
      mir likes this.
    3. mir May 20, 2021
      I often have to stop some of my coworkers to ask them questions. I usually ask "Are you busy?", but they are often juggling many things. I wonder if coming to ask a question when they finally have a breather is a bother, and if asking with the words "are you busy?" is like saying 'if you are not busy then you need to help me', like I'm saying a moment of peace isn't important.
      Reading this blog reminded me of that. Maybe using "Is now a good time?" is a better way to phrase it.
      Shiki and AliceShiki like this.
    4. AliceShiki May 17, 2021
      *hugs @CloudySkySadMoon* They ask you about it in your breaks even? God... That's just absurd... Seriously... *sighs*

      Breaks, holidays, weekends... Those exist so that we can take our time off work... We are not supposed to be working at our breaks, geez...

      Good luck to you too, Cloudy-chan! I hope things get better for you! ^^)/
      Hitedo likes this.
    5. CloudySkySadMoon May 17, 2021
      This question is so irksome when I am just relaxing with a nice novel. My dad usually asks question like this on my off time to piss me off.
      Edit: I had some 5/6? days of vacation. Everyday he'll ask if I'm working while I'm using my laptop when he's perfectly aware I'm not. Same with others in the family.
      Can't I be doing something else with my laptop? Why should I sacrifice my free time for work? A question I'd like to ask my co-workers. Coz they make me feel like they work on weekends too (not all the time, thank goodness). It's almost like the world is pressuring me to devote my life to work. No thanks.

      Sorry I'm almost ranting. I get triggered every time someone mentions work during my free time.

      I hope it doesn't become your trigger too. Good luck.
    6. PeanutButter and 23 others May 17, 2021
      I work hard. I make everything harder than they should be.
      Hitedo likes this.
    7. AliceShiki May 16, 2021
      @northerner Ganbatte... Wish I had anything else to say, but... Try your best.
      northerner and Hitedo like this.
    8. northerner May 16, 2021
      Funny, this is how I made my mom angry with me. My class sched is unpredictable. I may have classes today or not. She'll always tell me in the morning to buy some stuff, guard the store, etc. I don't have anything to do actually. I'm just on my bed, stressing about school works, relaxing so that I won't have a break down. Everytime she would ask, "are u doing anything?" I'm tempted to reply, "I'm busy thinking about my vague future." If she notices that I'm very upset going out at 8AM in the morning, she'll keep saying that she has a lot of things to do like the household chores and the store. Then, I'll just cry to myself and feel guilty that I'm a bad child.

      I mean, even if I'm not physically working, my mind is very tired that I need time for myself. I wish I'd turn into a dot.
      Hitedo likes this.