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Medium is a fickle beast that embodies the internet as a whole. It gives everyone a voice despite the fact that not everyone deserves a voice. One day, you can read Malcolm Gladwell. The next day, you can read an essay from a girl who relentlessly complains to her CEO. It’s truly all over the map.
But yesterday, an essay was published by an author – Melissa – who decided to shame the phenomenon of The Sunday Scaries, also known as the anxiety that sets in on Sunday nights before heading back to work or school. She thought it to be a good idea to hop on the “privilege” bandwagon and spewed some of the worst takes on the Scaries that I’ve ever seen.
Let’s discuss it paragraph by paragraph.
A Case Against The “Sunday Scaries”
If you’ve been on social media on a Sunday, you’ve likely seen it before: the pervasive “Sunday scaries.”
Yes, you have me to thank for that. I’m not saying that I came up with the term (because I didn’t), but when everyone from Redbull to Elite Daily to Cosmo plagiarizes the research you’ve done on them, I think it’s safe to say I’m allowed to take credit.
So yeah, Melissa. Go ahead and take shots at my livelihood.
· often appears as the caption to photo featuring one or more millennials (of a certain economic class) and/or brunch and/or lounging near a body of water.
While I don’t want to jump to conclusions, I think it’s safe to say that Melissa is insinuating that you have to be of a certain economic class to indulge in brunch and/or being near bodies of water. And that certain economic class is upper-middle class, isn’t it, Melissa? While brunch is commonly known as the bougiest of meals, I don’t think one has to make x-amount to enjoy eggs. Nor does someone need to be part of the one percent in order to exist next to water, the world’s most abundant natural resource.
But I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt here and hope you can explain yourself.
· signifies the completion of a (probably boozy) weekend and the near beginning of a new workweek (the author of this piece has nothing against boozy weekends, by the way).
Oh, wow, Melissa. You can afford the alcohol that fuels your boozy weekends? Must be nice. There are people in the world who can’t afford more than one meal per day. Must be nice to be that privileged, huh.
· is privileged as fuck, as it is intended to publicly display one’s privilege.
Okay, and here’s where we get to start disagreeing on a higher level. Because the last thing that’s going through everyone’s mind when they’ve contracted a case of Sunday Scaries is their internal need to display their “privilege.” But let me give you the opportunity to explain yourself, Melissa, because I’m sure your claims have grounds.
Are you srsly scared to go back to work on Monday? Please, for the love of brunch, don’t be! You have a job, and you’re lucky. I bet it’s a lot scarier to not have a job to look forward to come Monday. Without that job, how would you be able to afford the next $14 dollar bloody?
Listen up and listen good. Of course people are actually scared to go back to work on Mondays. Jobs are stressful. Jobs are a necessary evil when trying to provide yourself with the life you think you deserve. If jobs were candy and nuts, every day would be fucking Christmas. Having a job has nothing to do with privilege – having a job is a requirement in order to survive. Loans, rent, bills – they don’t pay themselves, 14-dollar bloody marys or not.
So. Many. People. don’t have the luxury of having a job in general or of having a job that pays a living wage that allows them kick back on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. For the jobless especially, every day is the “Sunday scaries,” except worse because without brunch or like, any guarantee of breakfast, lunch, or dinner. The threat and/or reality of not being able to afford enough food is too concrete a thing for too many people.
So you – the same girl who advocated boozy weekends a few paragraphs ago – are going to sit in your ivory tower shaming hardworking people who have been hired because of their qualifications for enjoying their time off as they so shall choose? Interesting strategy there. As someone who used to work an irregular schedule (but, albeit, has always been able to afford breakfast), the yearning for a more comfortable and consistent lifestyle was a motivation. Complaining about those who can afford the things I can’t is like solving an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum.
So. Many. People. (see what I did there?) work hard in stressful positions to provide for themselves.
Words are important, and the words that become especially popular are indicative of the ethos of a particular generation (or subgroup of that generation.) What kind of ethos are we building? How does this ethos affect the way we move through the world and how we treat others?
It’s like you just took a class and learned what “ethos” means and decided to use Sunday anxiety as your hill to die on. I’m ignoring this paragraph because it’s even more pointless than the greater argument you’re trying to make.
A few days ago I read a great article, or tbh it might’ve been a long comment in a thread, that highlighted how we tend to talk about privilege in terms of either a presence or an absence, depending on our situation. For those who experience privilege as a presence, it’s important to recognize that — and, if one has it, one damn well shouldn’t flaunt it. Rather, one can actively try and figure out how to help restructure the current system, you know, the one that allows for so many to suffer and so few to actually thrive and real their full potential.
What are you, new? Have you ever seen social media before, Melissa? It’s pretty much made to flaunt privilege. I haven’t posted on Instagram in a month because I haven’t done any cool shit over the last month, and no one wants me (or anyone else) to post their problems and dirty laundry for the world to see. That’s what Tumblr’s for. But condemning those for being proud of the fruits of their labor is pretty uppity, no? I mean, I don’t want to stoop to your level, but you’ve posted drinks to Instagram before. From Manhattan. That were probably close to those $14 bloodies you shamed everyone for earlier.
Using the phrase the “Sunday scaries” flaunts privilege. Let’s not do that. It may seem small, but it’s a step in the right direction re: being less of an asshole, re: maybe making the world a less agonizing place. No more “Sunday scaries.”
Nothing about publicly discussing your weekend-ending anxiety “flaunts privilege.” “Privilege” would be not having to go work the next day rather than being huddled away in your tiny apartment regretting all the money you spent leading up to Sunday night.
Having uneasiness about embarking on another long, arduous work week doesn’t make anyone an asshole or make the world an agonizing place – it’s natural. Natural worry. Natural to want to improve. Natural to progress. Natural to push yourself to the point where you don’t feel complacent.
I’ll get off my soapbox now. Happy Sunday, readers!
I mean, is it a happy Sunday for you, Melissa? I’d venture to guess that it isn’t. .
[via Medium]
Respond
Will
Will (Twitter / Instagram) is the host of The Sunday Scaries Podcast.
@willdefries
@willdefries
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will@grandex.co
Does she “like, srsly” expect anyone to take her “srsly” when she writes like that?
Hi! Who wants me? I’m here http://www.wantsmeet.com
Aide, you little minx!
So I’m privileged because I have brunch and a drink on Sunday to ease myself into the work week. But I’m also privileged to have that job, which I got just by being lucky. GTFO, who does this twat think she is? Fucking triggered by brunch, give me a break.
Wealthy people can’t have problems everyone knows that
K I get what she’s saying, obviously there are people who have it worse but tf is wrong with voicing your concerns and anxiety? Even if it is on an Instagram caption of brunch? We’re not sitting there cutting off a single mom who’s struggling to pay for her kids food and is a returning soldier or something with “yea I get what you’re saying Susan, but like, I feel like I’m my own way cubicle-life and dealing with the stress of maybe not amounting to the goals I made when I was younger is equal to your issues with PTSD and your economic status of constantly hovering the poverty line”.
Privilege is a real thing that yea we should be aware about it so we’re not complete racist assholes but this BS overuse ( or actually misuse) of the term privilege is fucking over dramatic, unnecessary and driving people further away from her point.
Know what’s worse than “privileged” post grads whining about their Scaries Melissa? You, who’s probably privileged enough to not have Scaries, whining about people with slightly less privilege than you who whining about their Sunday Scaries.
“So. Many. People. don’t have the luxury of having a job”
Having a job is a luxury?
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Publicly displaying ones upper-middle class privilege. PGPM.
She has a picture of herself at a rooftop pool party in Manhattan. Something tells me a salary as a freelance writer can’t afford that level of luxury. Should check daddy’s privilege, obviously.
$20 says that this chick was a liberal arts major, works at Starbucks and has mommy and daddy pay her rent.
…in San Francisco.
Nah they’d have to be rich to do that, not stereotypically upper middle class.
Manhattan apparently.
No more Sunday Scaries? She should tell that to the kids in Syria who are getting their houses bombed by their own government, then getting their family members killed by ISIS when they leave said house, then becoming a casualty from US and Russian bombing raids, then also being in the crossfire between Peshmerga PKK, ISIS, and The Syrian Army under Assad. But it’s cool, she’s not privileged or anything for being able to have a head that oversees her typing mentally retarded shit like this as she sits in a cozy coffee shop space probably holding back the urge to cry because her screen play didn’t get piloted so she has to resort to this in order to salvage some respect while also projecting a lifestyle on social media that makes her life look like a giant void of hypocrisy.
Great attention to detail and accuracy re: the conflict in syria.
You got me. After a year of being unemployed and applying for every job in the country, I had the luxury of being able to get a job. And then I used that job to get a house. And that house to adopt a puppy so it wouldn’t be living in a one-bedroom apartment. One day, I’ll buy a bigger house in a better neighborhood and have kids. Because that’s the American fucking dream. I’ll take my luxury and the Sunday Scaries that are the payment I make to keep living it.
American dream at its finest. Also, fuck Melissa
Yeah guys, she’s right. You should never be happy and enjoy yourself even a little knowing that there are people who have it worse than you.
And if you are happy, it’s best to check your privilege at the door and become unhappy since some people aren’t happy out there.
I fucking hate the word privilege.