Don't binge 'The Handmaid's Tale' over Memorial Day weekend. I am saying this because I care.

For many people, a three-day weekend is an excuse to attend a barbecue or spend some time outside, perhaps in a park or on the kind of rooftop that has chairs. For others, it’s an excuse to sit and catch up on TV while the world’s expectations are briefly and wonderfully paused. For those in the latter group, I have one television-related suggestion that will make your long weekend much better than it might be if my advice is not heeded, and please — just trust me:

Do not binge watch The Handmaid’s Tale over Memorial Day weekend. Do not binge watch The Handmaid’s Tale ever. Don’t make the mistake I made recently, which was to watch five of Season 2’s episodes in a row and then watch the sixth, most recent episode at work. It won’t be fun. Twenty minutes into episode one will compel any sane person to pour themselves a stiff drink, and there are hundreds of minutes to go before the first six episodes run their course. It’s not even halfway through the 13-episode season and I’m stressed.

The Handmaid’s Tale is an incredible feat of television and deserves its many accolades. It’s a visually gorgeous examination of one of many “what if” dystopian futures that speaks truth to the social and political changes the world is facing by extrapolating them into a fable that feels at the same time unfathomable and recognizable. There are multiple peely, onion-like layers encasing every beautifully acted glance, every linger of the camera and dilation of pupils, and to unwrap them all is to examine how humans manage to survive and (sometimes, not really) thrive under oppression. In short, it’s a bummer.

I am not saying that people should avoid The Handmaid’s Tale completely to preserve the integrity of their free day off. One episode a day will halfway catch up anyone who thought they’d wait until they had some time to binge watch the story of a woman trapped in a system of institutionalized sex slavery from which the only escape is death, or backbreaking labor followed by a different death. More than one a day is pushing it, as each harrowing episode requires one (1) bottle of red wine and an anxiety-laden, 14-hour waiting period during which the entire bottle should be consumed by one (1) person.

God, this show is amazing.

It’s very important to engage in media that forces people to acknowledge the power cultural norms have over society, and how quickly those norms can shift towards fascism in the wake of violence or instability. It’s also important to experience joy. Don’t use a valuable, rare pocket of freedom to catch up on a show that is designed from the absolute get-go to upset and provoke an examination of the worst elements of human nature. Watch a cartoon. Go outside. Grill an eggplant.

And for the love of all that is holy, don’t wait for July to binge watch all 13 episodes. Don’t even think about it. One a day, maximum. Enjoy the weekend.