
According to some, today is Blue Monday. ‘Blue Monday’ is the pseudoscientific name often attributed to the third Monday in January, which is purported to be the most depressing day of the year.
Although obviously complete nonsense, it does hold up to a small amount of scrutiny – Christmas is now long forgotten but the residual weight gain and poverty are still often being felt by many, who are further making themselves miserable by participating in ill-advised fads such as Dry January, or Veganuary (I’ve obviously got nothing against teetotalers or vegans but pretending that adopting either lifestyle for 31 days a year is going to make the blindest bit of difference to anything is a strange conviction to hold). Plus it’s cold outside. Well it is here in the UK. I’m vaguely aware that some of the small number of people who read my blog don’t live in the UK. So it might not be cold where you are.
I can usually be relied upon to be fairly miserable on Blue Monday because I can usually be relied upon to be miserable on most Mondays. I don’t know if I’m significantly more depressed than usual on Blue Monday.
Of course with the benefit of hindsight, to suggest that Blue Monday 2020 was the most depressing day of the year is rather to ignore what happened in the rest of 2020. Indeed the third Monday in January last year was a time of much greater optimism and prosperity. There was enough toilet roll for everyone and while there was talk of a possible pandemic, we all just assumed that meant people suffering and dying somewhere that wasn’t where we lived. So nothing to worry about really.
This year, there is perhaps a case for saying that Blue Monday might be the most depressing day of the year, because the pandemic that was supposed to be done and dusted by Christmas does, in fact, appear to be worse than ever. On the plus side, if today really is the most depressing day of the year then it means everything is going to start getting better from tomorrow.
So in the spirit of unfounded and misplaced optimism, I truly wish you the most miserable and depressing Blue Monday possible.
Thanks! And to you as well!
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It would appear so yes
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I am looking forward to Turquoise Tuesday which is slightly less blue…
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Oh don’t be so green!
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Thank you so much!
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I really mean it too
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That sounds far too enthusiastic for Blue Monday!
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It’s only because it’s written down. If we were in the same room it would have been with the appropriate monotone delivery that people who speak to me have come to expect and cherish.
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Whatever!
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I’m in the UK too, and I agree that it is a bit chilly. But I cheer myself up with the thought that it could be a whole lot colder 😛
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Perhaps I could swap my half empty glass for your half-full glass. What are you drinking again?
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Same. 🙃
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It’s a special time of year
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I had the urge to read this to my grade 11s, but then I suppressed it as would then know what I’m up to as I sit here trying to look serious. I did love this post, by the way, which is why I thought of reading it to my grade 11 class.
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I think you may have discovered what I did when I joined the teaching profession – kids don’t think I’m anywhere near as funny as I think I am…
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If you are kind of blue, then I suggest you go the extra miles to cheer up.
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I believe it would be frowned upon in the current circumstances. Although not illegal yet I don’t think.
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An interesting blend of optimism and melancholy.
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That could well be my epitaph
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A new tagline for your blog? “An interesting blend of optimism and melancholy.” And Haikus.
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Crap day, but a great track! Always make me think of fairgrounds. Tomorrow is always better – unless, of course, it is not…
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Tomorrow is always better until it becomes today. But it is a great track! Saw him supporting Pulp in the nineties. Greatly underrated.
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Well, it wasn’t a particularly great day, but I’ve honestly had days that were worse. I’m very dubious that this day went poorly enough to justify as the most rock bottom day of the year.
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Well there’s always next year. Unless there isn’t.
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That’s a satisfyingly bleak outlook.
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