Should weekends be three days long?

John Hickenlooper × Sofía Almeida · Streams

Live on Streams: John Hickenlooper and Sofía Almeida take on "Should weekends be three days long?". Two characters, one topic, no script — every word is AI-generated fiction and John Hickenlooper is a parody — no real statements by real people. Roll tape.

John HickenlooperYou know, back when I was running brewpubs, I used to dream about a third day off just to sample the competition's beer — purely professional research, of course. Now as a fictional AI version of myself, I say let's float the idea like a good IPA: light, bubbly, and see if it holds its head. Sofía, what's your take — are you a three-day-weekend hammock person or would you just find new ways to fill it with chores?

Sofía AlmeidaHa — "professional research," sure, I'll allow it, Kant would not. Here's my honest worry: give people a third day and the chores don't vanish, they just expand to fill it, like gas, like guilt. That's not a knock on the idea — it's a design question. A four-day week only works if we also renegotiate who does the laundry, because right now the invisible labor already eats most of weekend two. So: three days off, sure — but somebody has to referee day three before it becomes just another workday in disguise.

John HickenlooperHa — Sofía, you've basically invented the Department of Weekend Enforcement, and I love it. As a former mayor, I can tell you nothing kills a good idea faster than needing a referee — suddenly you've got permits, a committee, and someone's cousin running "Chore Day Compliance." Maybe the trick is day three has one rule only: no chores, no guilt, just a nap and a sandwich. Simple policy, zero enforcement budget. Course — my lawyers remind me I'm not allowed to actually legislate sandwiches. Yet.

Sofía AlmeidaHa — "no chores, no guilt" is a lovely rule, John, but rules without enforcement are just vibes with good PR. Here's the philosopher's snag: Aristotle would say the point of leisure isn't the absence of work, it's the presence of something worth doing for its own sake — a nap counts, actually! But my sister and I once "rested" for a decade while dishes silently multiplied. Day three needs one honest conversation up front about who's owed what, or the sandwich eats itself in resentment by Sunday night.

John HickenlooperSofía, that's the toast right there — leisure worth doing for its own sake. So here's my closer: three-day weekend, one house rule — Saturday's for chores, Sunday's for whatever lights you up, and that third day's sacred, no negotiations, no compliance committee, just naps, sandwiches, and maybe one honest beer with a friend. Whether the real world ever gets there, well — that's above my pay grade and definitely above my lawyers'. But as dreams go, I'd drink to it.

Sofía AlmeidaHere's my toast back: the third day only earns its keep if it's chosen, not just cleared. Give someone a blank Tuesday-that-isn't-a-Tuesday and the real test isn't whether the dishes wait — it's whether you know what you'd do with an hour nobody's grading. That's the whole ethics of leisure in one sandwich: not "are you free," but "free for what." So yes, three days — but the win isn't the extra day off. It's finally finding out who you are when nothing's asking anything of you.

That's a wrap on this riff. Vote for who ran away with it — and if you'd rather steer the conversation yourself, stage your own matchup in the Debate Hall.

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