| The Manana Mindset |
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| Written by Matt Landau | |
| Wednesday, October 10 2007 | |
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It was my original belief that nothing fostered relaxation more
than living in the tropics. Upon packing for my first trip down, I included the
kinds of things totally unnecessary for a vacation, yet quintessential for the
laid-back mindset that I was preparing to adopt. I packed a small comfortable beanbag
chair for example, and a wind chime, and even Enya's latest album, something
about saving the trees. The life I came from in the states was one that stressed the importance of punctuality and timeliness; the kind of environment in which being late or delivering something past its deadline is about as bad as smoking five cigarettes at once. School teachers stressed it, parents demanded it, and even my dog seemed to get pissed if his kibble wasn't presented before five o'clock. "Damn Sparky" I used to tell him. "Why you always gotta be so prompt." I liked to talk to Sparky as if I was a thug as it made me feel a certain bit of gangsta. Panama's manana mindset though has taken a while to adjust to. There are still times when delivery man arrives an hour (sometimes four) too late. And there are times when the people I'm meeting simply never show, no phone call, nothing. But alas, I'm not in the position to complain because in reality, it just seems to be part of Panamanian culture: this relaxed way of life founded on the concept that nothing (and I mean nothing) is really worth rushing to. There are some Panamanians who joke about this with me and there are others who take serious offense to it. But the truth is that when you make a meeting or schedule anything for that matter, you have to ask what kind of time you will be abiding by: Panama time or real time, seeing as though Panama time is significantly warped. There was once a time in middle school when I was handed fifty extra pushups for being three minutes late to gym class. The woman instructor was strong and manly, so I did not protest as she could have probably bent me in half using only her brawny tricep. But having been in search of that relaxed and unperturbed way of life, I actually have found the manana mindset in Panama to be quite enjoyable. For example, looking to take a girl on a date and caught in traffic? No problem, she was expecting you to be late anyway. Maybe you're heading into an important court hearing but you stained your tie? Go home and change it my brother. The judge won't mind a bit! With regards to business or in reality anything you need done on time, the manana mindset can be frustrating for northerners at times, but alas, you cannot fight it. Don't become aggravated or irritated or bothered or annoyed because your little temper tantrum will fall on deaf ears. I say if you can't beat em, join em. But if you really don't think it's something you could live with, you might just want to go home now. Otherwise, embrace this lethargic lifestyle with open arms and chances are, sometime tomorrow, it'll embrace you right back. Note: I got the image of the broken clock from: masterblog.front.lv/wp/files/willbe_clock_38.jpg |
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| Last Updated ( Monday, October 22 2007 ) |
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