I love words. Love, love, love words. I love their roots, their meanings, derivatives of words and mostly their potential for creating images filled with emotion.
Today, I accomplished a job that I have been putting off for 2 weeks. I procrastinated! I am a procrastinator...in fact, I am a PROcrastinator.
Yeah, there is a little shame involved but, let's be honest! I am an accomplished procrastinator. You wouldn't believe how many extraordinary things I have churned out in a frenzied last minute.
Flipping the pages of my etymology dictionary to the P's, we find that 'procrastinate' was introduced to polite society circa 1540 from the French root "procrastine". History tells us that around 1580 the speakers of latin begin using "procrastinatus" which is an active present tense verb of defering, delaying. Evolving into the past participle "Procrastinare" meaning one has already "deferred, delayed, put off till tomorrow."
It is amusing that procrastinatus is defined as an active verb of defering and delaying, almost as if the procrastinator is a goalie in a soccer game defending the goal of being reached rather than sitting in the garden, peeling grapes while reading about Jason and the Argonauts latest adventure!
If man has been on earth for thousands of years, was there a sudden surge of laziness in the 1500's? Was the human race sufficiently efficient until the Little Ice Age of the Middle Ages? Did the cold inspire Middles Agers to sit by the fire instead of harvest, or plant or bake the bread?
The noun defining "one who defers, delays and puts off," is (momentary hesitation to build suspense) Procrastinator! That word did not rise until 1600. Sixty years from verb to noun! Now that is some heavy duty delaying and deferring!
My little exercise of deferring the project at hand for two weeks is nothing in comparison!
(Hanging my head in shame!) Damn, I am not the Consummate Procrastinator.
I can only repeat the wise words of Horace, "Vitanda est improba siren desidia!" One must avoid that wicked temptress, Laziness!
Our friend, Horace, might have had some impulse control issues, for another saying he is famous for is "Carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero" more or less directly translated means "Seize the day, putting little or no trust in tomorrow!" My personal take on that is "Drink your wine today because there might not be a tomorrow!"
Carpe Diem is my anthem! I may at any time be deferring the completion of a project but it doesn't mean that I am sitting in a dark corner sucking on my thumb. I am dancing! I am swimming. I am seizing the day and living like I mean it.
As for the delayed projects; they are brewing in the Nec Temere, Nec Timide file. "Not rashly, not timidly!" If it's good enough for the Royal Danish Naval Academy, it is good enough for me!
Today, I accomplished a job that I have been putting off for 2 weeks. I procrastinated! I am a procrastinator...in fact, I am a PROcrastinator.
Yeah, there is a little shame involved but, let's be honest! I am an accomplished procrastinator. You wouldn't believe how many extraordinary things I have churned out in a frenzied last minute.
Does that make me the Consummate PROcrastinator? Should I make a sweatshirt announcing my propensity for last minute pushes! Will anyone believe it is not laziness but pure anxiety that the final product won't be perfection?
Flipping the pages of my etymology dictionary to the P's, we find that 'procrastinate' was introduced to polite society circa 1540 from the French root "procrastine". History tells us that around 1580 the speakers of latin begin using "procrastinatus" which is an active present tense verb of defering, delaying. Evolving into the past participle "Procrastinare" meaning one has already "deferred, delayed, put off till tomorrow."
It is amusing that procrastinatus is defined as an active verb of defering and delaying, almost as if the procrastinator is a goalie in a soccer game defending the goal of being reached rather than sitting in the garden, peeling grapes while reading about Jason and the Argonauts latest adventure!
If man has been on earth for thousands of years, was there a sudden surge of laziness in the 1500's? Was the human race sufficiently efficient until the Little Ice Age of the Middle Ages? Did the cold inspire Middles Agers to sit by the fire instead of harvest, or plant or bake the bread?
The noun defining "one who defers, delays and puts off," is (momentary hesitation to build suspense) Procrastinator! That word did not rise until 1600. Sixty years from verb to noun! Now that is some heavy duty delaying and deferring!
My little exercise of deferring the project at hand for two weeks is nothing in comparison!
(Hanging my head in shame!) Damn, I am not the Consummate Procrastinator.
I can only repeat the wise words of Horace, "Vitanda est improba siren desidia!" One must avoid that wicked temptress, Laziness!
Our friend, Horace, might have had some impulse control issues, for another saying he is famous for is "Carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero" more or less directly translated means "Seize the day, putting little or no trust in tomorrow!" My personal take on that is "Drink your wine today because there might not be a tomorrow!"
Carpe Diem is my anthem! I may at any time be deferring the completion of a project but it doesn't mean that I am sitting in a dark corner sucking on my thumb. I am dancing! I am swimming. I am seizing the day and living like I mean it.
As for the delayed projects; they are brewing in the Nec Temere, Nec Timide file. "Not rashly, not timidly!" If it's good enough for the Royal Danish Naval Academy, it is good enough for me!
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