Burn the midnight oil

At one time there was a verb for working late by candlelight - elucubrate. Henry Cockeram defined that in his The English dictionarie, or an interpreter of hard English words, 1623:
"Elucubrate, to doe a thing by candlelight."

In 1635 English author Francis Quarles wrote in Emblemes,
"Wee spend our mid-day sweat, or mid-night oyle;
Wee tyre the night in thought; the day in toyle."

Candles, or midnight oil, was needed when there was no electricity. So now that we have electricity the phrase isn't necessary but is still used to figuratively mean that someone is working long and late hours.
(source)

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The End of Affirmation 365

I've been thinking about it for over a month. Usually, when I'm in it I'm engaged. But this time? I started it indifferent and I've felt indifferent all along. I should have never started. Hindsight is 20/20 they say and they aren't wrong. So when I opened my eyes this morning it was clear. It's time. Time to quit this 365. This is the first 365 that I haven't posted several of the days, the first 365 that I wasn't super excited about, the first 365 that I've quit. I've changed my social media presence and interactions the past year so this is also the first 365 that hardly anyone has been interested in. Is it the topic or my decision to not be as accessible on social media? Or is it some other reason altogether? Well, regardless...I'm throwing in the towel on this one. I can't say if I'll ever do another 365 again. Time will tell and I will know if and when it's time.

Affirmation Day 273

Don’t quit - replace: The key to changing your habits for good Change Any Habit Painlessly How to Change Unhealthy Habits

Call it a Day

The literal use of this phrase hails from 1838 when the phrase originally was "call it half a day" to mean leaving work early. (source) The modern use of the phrase is to indicate ending something due to false sense of accomplishment.

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