My fortune-cookie fortune, cracked open just minutes ago:

Hard work pays off in the future,
laziness pays off now.

I’m sure the intent of this little chestnut of wisdom is to encourage sensible preparation for the future. However, as I check my timepiece, I see that it’s precisely… now o’clock. So clearly, I know what to do — or, to the point, not do — to get that instant payoff.

Too bad I’m too busy to heed that cookie-borne advice. All told, I’d have been better off with a non-committal, if enigmatic, empty fortune cookie.