So I’m working on a new non-fiction project about the weekend and no, I don’t mean the rapper The Weeknd. My book will be filled with “e”s. 48: On Taking Back the Weekend in a 24/7 World will also be a look at how we lost those 48 hours of respite that used to punctuate the end of each week. A few clues: the end of organized labour; the phone on which you are reading this; the rise of the “knowledge economy.” What does it mean when work bleeds into every corner of our lives, taking over the time we once savoured for human connection, and the tending of our best selves? I’m interested in Aristotle’s definition of leisure as a time outside servile obligation –a necessity of civilized existence. What if we don’t have that time anymore? Who do we become?
The good news is it turns out there are a lot of experts, gurus, CEOs, academics and regular people who have figured out how to protect the weekend, and they’re living better because of it. This book is about how 48 hours can trigger real, profound changes, in our lives and our world.
I’d love to hear from you about this. Drop me a line. katrina.onstad@gmail.com.