I selected my airline ticket itinerary online. Right before the web site took me to the payment screen, and somewhere after entering my cell number (in case the airline had to reach me), I was asked a simple question. Was my trip for business or pleasure? There was a scroll down screen with these two choices. I paused. I had to think. True, I was getting paid to perform a concert at the Grand Opera House of the South in Crowley, Louisiana, but the trip, like the ones previous to it this month was nothing but pleasure.
I clicked “business”. It seemed the right thing to do for the airline’s survey purposes, but the days that followed were fun, silly and filled with adventure, music and gratitude. Surely this much dopamine is not released on a business trip? Maybe the airlines need to be more specific.
A friend remarked to me one day that she was filling out a form at the doctor’s office. You know the kind. You are asked to write in your name, address and all the vital statistics. Where it said “sex?”, instead of checking the box “Male” or “Female” she noticed there was a blank space. In it, she wrote “yes please.” Again, specificity would have avoided any confusion.
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