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October 6, 2025 |
NatNews |
ISSUE 186 |
PT WHAT?
Many employees have access to paid time off in their employment roles, though one Pew Research survey revealed that more than 40 percent of individuals do not use all of their allotted PTO. And just because people are taking vacation days doesn’t mean that they aren’t letting their minds escape work—another survey showed that 55 percent of workers sometimes respond to work emails or other work messages outside of their normal hours. However, regardless of how many people are doing so, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a healthy decision to make. Hawaii resident Tara Janke said she believes that removing oneself from work completely every once in a while is definitely beneficial for one’s mental health. “Taking a break from work seems like the most important thing to give your brain and stress level a chance to rest and reboot,” she said. Janke said even if a person doesn’t take an extended vacation or days-long getaway, stepping away from job-related responsibilities can result in a mental and physical boost. “Even if you are able to take little breaks throughout the day—taking a walk or enjoying a coffee—can make a huge difference,” she said. “For me, giving myself breaks when I can makes me work better in the long run.” Like Janke, Fort Worth resident Marc Hall understands how necessary it is for a person to use as much of his or her PTO as possible. “I notice a big difference, even after taking a day off from work during the week,” he said. “I’m recharged and focused the next day. I think this is important when it comes to working out, as well. Sometimes I just take a day off when my body tells me (but I do feel like I added on a few pounds of weight).” Hall said he truly believes that using those offered PTO days provides both mental and physical health benefits and noted that he has read several articles indicating so. For him, something as simple as taking an unplanned day off or going on a longer planned vacation has historically allowed him to get the escape he needs to come back more focused and rejuvenated. |
“Some of my best getaways fall into the ‘recharged’ category—usually a week abroad with a dedicated focus on a swim-up bar, offering time to relax and reflect on life,” he said. “The only real challenge is when a non-U.S. person I meet asks if I understand that a tariff is a tax on the people.” Janke said she knows that getaways are not always feasible, but she is grateful that she lives in a destination setting and can enjoy other simple pleasures when she opts to use some of her PTO days. “Vacations are the absolute best way to recharge, but from a day-to-day perspective, a little downtime with my favorite show, reading a good book, and a little time at the pool or beach help me a lot,” she said. Finding a greater work-life balance can contribute to better overall mental and physical health, but many individuals struggle to do so and often experience stress and burnout. Additionally, it’s not uncommon for employees to feel like missing time from work would actually contribute to any existing stress. “Life is so busy, and there are always things to get done, which makes it hard to take the necessary breaks,” Janke said. “It can be challenging for some folks who have extra work to do once they come back from a vacation.” Determining priorities can be tricky at times, particularly when it comes to one’s career, but focusing on your own well-being—which includes taking time off work—can also help ensure that you’re performing your best in your job. “I don’t think people take enough time to truly enjoy the things they enjoy,” Hall said. “Most people I know fall into one of two groups—those who can’t afford to take time off and those who get so focused on work that they forget to slow down. I’ve spent most of my life somewhere mixed in both of those, still enjoying life along the way. Only in the last five years, though, have I really made time to enjoy life even more—through travel, downtime, and moments that recharge me.” |
DID YOU KNOW?
Before rubber erasers were invented in the late 1700s, rolled-up pieces of white bread were used to erase graphite. |
THE PERILS OF THE DATING WORLD
The world of dating has evolved over the years—we obviously don’t live in the same world as Jane Austen and her beloved characters like Emma, Elizabeth Bennett, and Mr. Darcy, and being “pinned” certainly doesn’t currently have the same meaning as it did in the 1950s. Dating apps grew in popularity beginning in 2012, and even those have changed drastically and altered the way singles interact, often creating frustrations for those seeking soulmates and leaving them wishing that there were simpler ways to meet people. Dallas resident Damon Yousefy said dating is more challenging in our current environment because dating apps cause people to become less invested. “As soon as something about a date is not exactly in line with what a person wants in an ideal partner, people continue swiping instead of approaching with curiosity and compromise,” he said. “People also need to be more upfront about their wants in a relationship—marriage, kids, staying at home or continuing their careers after children, etc.” Dallas-area resident Morgan Fritz thinks a reason for the sometimes feelings of disappointment and frustrations with dating could be because single people aren’t as intrigued by dating apps as they used to be, and their views on dating and finding those who are compatible with them have changed. “It’s not new and exciting anymore, and it can feel like a chore sometimes,” she said. “However, society has also largely evolved from the in-person dating scene that was before apps. I think we’re in this spot of ‘what do we do now?’” No one seems to have a clear-cut answer to Fritz’s question, and people have different viewpoints and reasons for having the feelings they do. Orange County resident Hannah Chapman said one complicated aspect of the current dating scene is that people have set high standards for what they want to find in their partners, though they often don’t even meet those certain standards themselves. “It’s also really easy to meet someone once on a date and find something small that doesn’t quite align with you and then write them off, rather than getting to know someone and seeing all of the things that do align,” she said. Chapman said there are also several other factors that make dating difficult in today’s world. “We don’t like to inconvenience ourselves, but getting in a relationship requires us to be inconvenienced,” she said. “We are also no longer focused on building a village—we’re focused on building ourselves.” Many single individuals often experience frustrations because even though they may not be fans of dating apps, they aren’t quite sure of the best alternatives as options for meeting people in the wild. “I think, as a culture, we could try to bring back elements of in-person dating again, but I’m not sure what that would be,” Fritz said. “But I also can’t think of a way to change the apps that would make them better, either.” However, Fritz said she does think the ideal place to meet someone would be at an event, group, or setting in which people can become friends first without the immediate pressures of jumping right into dating. “I’m shy, so this might just be a personal opinion, but there’s something that feels more promising about going out with someone you at least somewhat know,” she said. Like Fritz, Chapman said she also believes that it would be nice to be able to meet other people without the sole focus being finding someone to date. |
“I think we need more places for people to gather where the purpose is not dating, but mingling is encouraged,” she said. “You can meet a lot of cool people when the pressure is off, but you’re both doing something you enjoy.” There are ways for like-minded individuals to meet in various settings, including through clubs and groups for running and other sports or fitness-related endeavors. Chapman, who plays in a social beach flag football league in Orange County, said she generally has a positive outlook in regard to her dating life, but it often depends on the day. Whatever her mood or situation at the time, she knows that it’s important not to be careless or have a closed-off attitude. “I’d say there is no ideal way to meet someone—just an ideal mindset,” she said. “Be open and curious and willing to be vulnerable, and be smart about it.” Yousefy said he thinks that one way single people would have more positive experiences in dating is if they adjusted their expectations a bit, though he said there are additional solutions that could also lead to improvements. “I think dating could also get better if people were open about their objectives in order to respect the time of others,” he said. “It would also be beneficial if social clubs people are already involved in (gyms, affinity groups, etc.) hosted singles mixers.” However, Yousefy said he believes that the ideal way for a single person to meet someone compatible is through a friend’s introduction. “Hopefully the matchmaking friend knows what each person is looking for, and having a mutual friend discourages poor dating behavior, such as ghosting, since word would get back to the friend group,” he said. Regardless of how people want to or choose to meet others, different single people also have different feelings in terms of hopes they have in meeting people with whom they could see futures. Some are still actively trying to make it happen, while others either don’t care enough to put in much effort or are too tired of doing so and are more focused on prioritizing other areas of their lives, such as their careers, friendships, and personal growth. Fritz said she currently has a positive outlook in believing that she is going to meet her lobster (if you didn’t watch Friends, just google it) soon. “I’m focusing on building my own life right now in hopes that he’s doing the same,” she said. “The apps just don’t feel aligned for me, so I’m trusting that feeling and believing I’m going to meet him somewhere else.” Similar to Fritz, Yousefy knows that another person will not complete his life, and it’s still important for him to enjoy what he already has. Overall, he said he also has a generally positive perspective in terms of his dating life because he’s happy as a single person. “I have great friends, I’m physically active, and I am happy in my career, so my life is fulfilled, whether or not I have a significant other,” he said. “So, if I find someone special, I know she will be adding to my life, and it’s not just settling or avoiding loneliness.”
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