What kind of sit is this?

     Sitting. It's a simple physical act. In fact, I wouldn't even call it an act. It's more of a lack of action, though there are obvious physical activities, internally, that are occurring in our bodies. But still, it's hardly the same. I read a news article a few days ago, and in it it stated that Britons spend 14 hours, on the average, parked on their bottoms. Fourteen hours? How painfully unforgiving is that? Talk about a future streak of undeniable muscle ache, muscle atrophy, and a regrettable check list of other ailments and physical setbacks that may, or may not, leave you looking like the Humpback's estranged cousin from southern Aquitaine.

    Why do I mention this? Well, I have acquired a new job, and as delighted as I should be about it, I'm not. Granted with the economy in it's current dilapidated state, and the depressing truth that my country's currency is slowly becoming equal to that of laminated Monopoly money, I still can't bring myself to be joyful over my new found employment.

    Now, not to sound ungrateful, as I was out of work for over a year, and living on air, water, and the occasional serving of whole wheat noodles, but there are days when I almost begin to feel that I was healthier and happier BEFORE going back to work. If I was hungry, I ate; even if it was on the minimalist's scale. If I was thirsty, I poured myself a glass of water. If I was tired, I took a nap. If I wanted to stretch a leg, I went for a walk. Now there's something. A walk. Oh walks, how I miss you sometimes, if not all the time. My days were my own, and I set the bar for the intensity and stress that would follow.

    This is where my point drops in like a mercury anvil on an ant. When I was out of work I was incredibly active. I jogged, I walked, I did yoga, and even dabbled in qigong again. I was becoming a healthier me. And I loved it.

    And then I got a job...

    Again, don't get me wrong, I love the fact that I can go out and buy food. Real food. Good food. And that I don't have to worry about whether or not I'll be able to keep the lights on, are the heat going, or the water flowing. However, there seems to be a crucial trade-off that, at times, I question whether it's worth it. For example, and this is the big one, where I work I am not allowed breaks. Ever. I can go to lunch, yes, but those nice 10 or 15 minutes breaks, fitted somewhere in the first and last 4 hours of the 8 hour workday...well...they're not allowed. Why? Not even Buddha knows the answer to that. And this is the problem. I sit. All day. I sit in the car for my 40 minute drive to work. I sit, per the demand of the place where I work, for 8 hours. Then I get back in my car to sit for another 40 minutes.
    (Sheesh, my legs have gone numb just writing that.)
    Anyway, that's 9 hours and 20 minutes, a day, worth of sitting. That's not including the times I sit when I get home, though, I admit, those sitting sessions feel less like 'work sitting', and more like liberation sitting. It's almost like I'm sitting to rest from the all the sitting I did at work and in the car. How the hell does that make sense? But really, every work week I sit for at least 46 hours. That's almost two days for crying out loud!

    The human body works like a giant, organic pump system. Blood and, depending on physical activity, lactic acid, is pumped through the body constantly, and what does all the pumping? Muscles. If the muscles aren't doing anything, the blood isn't flowing like it should. This, in turn, causes muscle weakness, dizziness, atrophy, lethargy, and, in worst cases, thrombosis. Not to mention you aren't burning off the calories of the foods you're eating, usually at your desk because management frowns every time you leave your chair, even if it's to take a crap, or relieve your screaming bladder from all the coffee and/or pop you've been downing like a fish. (Though I personally don't drink either. My bladder screams from over consumption of ice water.)

    So what are we left with? A body that is brutalized with inactivity for over a third of the day. Honestly, why does the working world still cling to this dinosaur ideology of: "We must have them in chairs, in brick and mortar buildings! We must SEE them at their desk!"

    Why not have people work from home? The traffic on the roads would be cut in half. The pollution would be far less. People could get up and move around whenever they wanted, and, given the means to do so, could actually be doing an exercise routine WHILE doing their work on the computer. How insane is that? Making it so your job fits to your life, instead of shackling on the chains and rattling down the road of Employment Purgatory, shouldn't be scoffed at with idiotic comebacks that start with "That's a great idea, but...."

    But I suppose it's the trade-off in today's society. Either be poor and, having the knowledge to be as such, relatively healthy. Or work extensively and watch your body mutate into something awkward and, for some of us watching ourselves in the mirror, unfamiliar.

    Let's hear it for the employers' markets! Long live the unaware indentured slave.