Labor Day without labor

Labor Day weekend is closer than I want. It's the last hoorah of the summer ... that time when life is different.

Summer's my favorite season. It's about a freedom ... from routines like school and endless networking events and meetings that fill the calendar. There's a lightness in the air - even in scorching heat. Foods are different - fresh vegetables right out of the garden, veggie stands on street corners, hard crabs to pick on newspapers. Scorching heat means wearing fewer clothes. Pass a swimming pool and listen to the squeals of children as they jump and splash in the water.

You can probably find me at my 'waterfront' office ... up to my waist in the pool with my work papers spread on the deck. You get the idea how much I love summer.
Summer's end is near for this year with Labor Day.

Labor Day is strictly American. The federal government started it in 1882 from a desire the Central Labor Union had for a day off for the "working man". It wasn't too long ago that most businesses were closed that day, even gas stations and theatres.

Now it's business as usual. Sales are everywhere. Back to school shopping and new back packs fill carts. Family and friends gather to play, relax, travel, and have their last fling before getting back to fall and its routine.

Labor sounds arduous, hard, and downright unpleasant. Labor Day is coming.

So here's an idea. Being open minded is a trait of smart women so read on.

What would a laborless Labor Day look like? Is it even possible? The things we do because we love to do them can take labor right out of the picture. Here are some radical thoughts on a laborless Labor Day.

The blackberry gets left on the desk. Do for a whole day what brings you pleasure and makes your heart sing. Plant yourself in a cozy chair and read that book you bought too long ago. Take the easel in the pasture and paint all day. Spend the day with friends and family. Go to a place you haven't been before. Talk to friends you've been meaning to call.

With your open mind what would your laborless Labor Day look like?

The Smart Woman's Club would love to celebrate your laborless Labor Day with our members. Just let me know your comments, plans and ideas on a Labor Day without labor. Send them to smokie@smartwomansclub.com or put them on here on our blog.

Smart women make smart choices. Have a fun, safe Labor Day holiday.

There was news.

Last night there was news that brought back memories.

When I was in college at VCU, all the pictures of China were dreamy. There was always a haze over everything, making it a magical place that maybe Disney created. The mountains were tall with a river curving through them and a moon hanging romantically at just the right place. It was a mystical place like no other.

Those pictures flooded my memory as I looked at artists' renderings of the same mystical scenes when I was in China in 2005. On the small cruise ship going down the Yanghtze River every view from the windows and top deck was covered with that same filmy haze. It was like wearing foggy lenses. For 3 days I went down the river, passing ferries, coal barges and funny looking boats. Modern cities loomed on the top of ridges, replacing the villages where people lived for generations. Locks near the Three Gorges Dam, an engineering marvel, facilitated getting to the next port.

I felt like I was in one of those filmy pictures! Being a romantic at heart, it did look dreamy and romantic. The truth is that it was anything but dreamy and romantic. It was air pollution!

The water itself was green and looked good to my untrained eye. Knowing that the air was dirty and knowing that there are few, if any, environmental controls on businesses there, I guessed the river was probably dirty, too.

The news last night was about the Yahngtze River. My ears perked up only to hear more news. The river is so dirty that it is deemed to cause cancer! Cancerous was the word used.

How can something that looks so romantic be so toxic? It is the source of water for tons of people! The news made me sad.