I know there's a whole social aspect to smoking and the smoke breaks too. Maybe there should be a group of nonsmokers who go out every hour or so to get fresh air:) Why is it that it's acceptable for smokers to take more breaks? It just doesn't make sense to me.
Agreed. Seems unfair that nonsmokers get looked as if they were lazy by taking regular breaks, whereas it's much more acceptable if one "needs to go smoke."
I understand how necessary smoking can be sometimes.. the absence of which could actually be a detriment to productivity. But I wonder whether non-smokers in society make that connection. I think of smoking pretty much the same way I think about people going to the restroom--sure, you're up and not being productive, but it's not like you have a choice.
I also wonder whether a similar number of breaks would be as effective for the nonsmoker. In the absence of cigarettes, my kneejerk reaction to a stressful day is to leave and go lie down somewhere to take a nap, or just close my eyes for a few minutes. (On very rare, very bad days, I've gone to my car and done just that.) But going and standing outside for 10 minutes, say, 4-5 times in a day probably wouldn't do much for me without ingesting some sort of chemical.
I'm not really a non-smoker, I'm a social smoker who is rarely social nowadays! I used to smoke when I went out & had cocktails or when we had parties, and I did that for about 10-12 years. Now I think I've smoked once or twice in the past year. Not being out & having drinks means that I'm also not smoking. I never developed a dependency on them, so can't possibly understand the "need" to leave one's office to go out for a smoke. Thanks for comparing it to a bathroom break, that makes some sense.
As for taking a similar number of breaks, because of my issues, when I'm at the office I often stop and stretch my neck and then just sit there at my desk with my eyes closed for a couple of minutes - several times a day. They've stopped looking at me weird, but 2 years ago when I started trying random things I'd get those sideways looks of, what is she doing NOW? Likely if I didn't have a health problem that required breaks, people would come up and interrupt to "snap me out of it" so I'd get back to work.
You could fire up the old hacky sack instead. I know when I'm feeling stressed, nothing calms my nerves quite like kicking the beanbag around. A little solo 'sacking on the balcony suits any hot summer night.
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Hilarious post, btw.
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I also wonder whether a similar number of breaks would be as effective for the nonsmoker. In the absence of cigarettes, my kneejerk reaction to a stressful day is to leave and go lie down somewhere to take a nap, or just close my eyes for a few minutes. (On very rare, very bad days, I've gone to my car and done just that.) But going and standing outside for 10 minutes, say, 4-5 times in a day probably wouldn't do much for me without ingesting some sort of chemical.
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I'm not really a non-smoker, I'm a social smoker who is rarely social nowadays! I used to smoke when I went out & had cocktails or when we had parties, and I did that for about 10-12 years. Now I think I've smoked once or twice in the past year. Not being out & having drinks means that I'm also not smoking. I never developed a dependency on them, so can't possibly understand the "need" to leave one's office to go out for a smoke. Thanks for comparing it to a bathroom break, that makes some sense.
As for taking a similar number of breaks, because of my issues, when I'm at the office I often stop and stretch my neck and then just sit there at my desk with my eyes closed for a couple of minutes - several times a day. They've stopped looking at me weird, but 2 years ago when I started trying random things I'd get those sideways looks of, what is she doing NOW? Likely if I didn't have a health problem that required breaks, people would come up and interrupt to "snap me out of it" so I'd get back to work.
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seriously though: martinis
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