Spartan Daily - Serving San Jose State University since 1934

Issue date: 9/4/08 Section: Opinion

The other day I was walking on campus with a friend, and she happened to mention something that I used to say quite often. She turned to me and said, "You know the funniest thing you ever said was that in America all you need is a pair of pajamas and a work outfit."

That got me thinking. I went home, dug through my closet, and lo and behold, three-fourths of my clothing were for work and one-fourth was sleeping attire.

Now you may wonder what I am talking about. Think about this: Last time you went shopping, did you buy a cute dress for a party or did you buy black slacks for work? When was the last time you actually enjoyed yourself?

Although I came to this country as an immigrant in '99, I consider myself an American on a lot of levels. I even recently became a citizen.

I grew up in a small country called Bosnia and Herzegovina, and we consider ourselves to be quite European.

Growing up, I remember no matter how busy your life got, you always had time to take a nap. Meal times were never missed; we always ate on time, even if it meant leaving work early.

One thing I could never wrap my head around was the fact that in America people don't have the time to do anything except sleep, work or go to school - hence the idea that all you need is work clothes and pajamas.

Why is that? Is it because Americans are all workaholics compared to Europeans who seem to have more free time?

If I were living outside of this country, I would definitely say yes. However, I have experienced this on my own. You cannot survive any other way.

In order to obtain a higher education you need money, there-fore you must work. Once you obtain that education, you need to work dawn till dusk to support your family or pay off your student loans. It is not because Americans do not know how to have fun, but rather because it is a matter of survival.

I also lived in Germany for a while. The Germans take their free time to a whole new level. Three p.m. is official naptime. If you lived in an apartment complex like I did, everyone would take a nap at 3 p.m.

They have an infinite number of vacation days, too. I recently called up a friend in Germany, and she said that she just got back from her one-month vacation.

Here in America, if you get two weeks off, you can consider yourself pretty lucky. Try asking for a month off, and your boss will reply by answering, "Your job may not be here when you get back."

Continued...

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